


Breathin'

by CakeWalk



Category: Actor RPF, Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Abusive Parents, Acting, Age Difference, Albums, Concerts, Dark Side of Fame, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, F/M, Fame, Fluff, Hollywood, Hurt/Comfort, Inspired by Beyond the Lights, Inspired by an Ariana Grande Song, Los Angeles, Marvel - Freeform, Miami, Movie Stars, Music, New York, Past Sexual Assault, Protective Sebastian, Record labels, Recording Studios, Romance, Singing, Songwriting, award shows, latina, music career, music video, popstar
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-16
Updated: 2019-10-30
Packaged: 2020-03-06 07:38:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 26,678
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18846580
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CakeWalk/pseuds/CakeWalk
Summary: Belen is one of pop music's most successful recording artists right at the height of her career. The media sees a diva born to be in the spotlight which is the kind of popstar Sebastian Stan thinks he'll meet when he's cast in one of her music videos but he meets a much different person on the set of her music video. He sees a shy and sad girl abused by the person who's supposed to have her best interests at heart and a girl who just wants to sing and write songs. He soon learns that the Belen the public sees and the one behind closed doors are two very different people. Sebastian might even count himself lucky that he knows the girl behind closed doors. The real Belen.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So I own none of the characters except Belen, her mom, and Melissa. This story was kind of inspired by the film 'Beyond the Lights'. It's actually a really good film if you want to see it. I'm also modeling Belen's music career after Ariana Grande's career because I feel like that would be the kind of singer Belen would be. I own none of the music in the story. That all goes to Ariana Grande. I'm just a fan of her music and decided to use her as the inspiration behind Belen. Her music, at least. Belen and Ariana Grande's backgrounds are completely different. I know I should update my other stories and all I have to say is that I'm sorry. The beginning of this story takes place around spring 2016.

She couldn’t remember a moment where she was in charge of her own destiny.

Belen really tried to wrack her brain for a moment where she felt like she was making a decision for herself but the only thing she came up with was when she was six. Her dad took her to an ice cream shop a couple blocks away from their house.

Those were the good old days.

The days where everything was happy and free of all the other ridiculousness and drama her life seemed to encompass.

Her hand was so small in her father's hand as they crossed the street and headed towards the ice cream shop. Belen still remembered the smell of the ocean and the humidity of the hot Florida air against her skin and through her hair. Her mother had worked extra hard to brush her hair free of all the tangles. Whenever the humidity was thick like that her hair was impossible to manage. A con of having Hispanic hair as her Abuela always used to say.

Her father told her that she could have any ice cream flavor she wanted. Belen stood on her tippy toes as she looked over all the different ice cream flavors. Her hands were pressed against the glass which caused her father to scold her, informing her that someone would have to work extra hard at the end of the day to clean the glass if she did that.

Her father was always like that.

Kind and thoughtful.

It was what she loved most about him.

Belen took a considerable amount of time deciding on what flavor she wanted but eventually, she picked birthday cake. There was something about the flavor of cake mix that Belen always loved. Maybe it reminded her of licking the bowl clean of the leftover cake mix her grandmother used to bake cakes. It was never anything fancy. The cheap store brand of the boxed cake mix but Belen always savored the flavor of the cake mix whenever her grandmother let her lick the spoon.

Maybe it wasn’t even the flavor she loved.

Maybe it was just the memory.

Belen didn’t know but she remembered sitting there in ice cream shop with her father on a hot summer day in Miami as she devoured her birthday cake ice cream and he ate his bubblegum flavored one which always turned his tongue blue for an hour or so. He would laugh at her as she managed to get ice cream all over her face although he would hastily clean her up before they left. Her father worried about sending her mother into a panic. Her mother always panicked over the littlest things, after all.

Now that Belen was a twenty-three-year-old woman, she was quick to realize that time in her life was the only time where she actually made her own decision. Although those frequent trips to the ice cream shop soon ended after her father died when she was nine. The happy times went with him and Belen honestly couldn’t ever remember being as happy as she had been back then.

“Belen, have you gone over the video concept with the director yet?” An all too familiar voice asked her and Belen flinched as she was snapped out of her thoughts.

She glanced up from her phone, which she had been staring blankly at for the past half an hour, and looked at her mother who was staring at her expectantly. There was hardly any other way her mom looked at her. Things used to be different before her father died but it seemed as though his death changed them both and not for the better.

“Not yet,” Belen said quietly, not really having a good excuse to give her mother. An annoyed look came over her mother’s face as she sighed heavily.

“Belen, we’re due to shoot the video in just three weeks. ‘Into You’ is going to be a big hit single for you so this video needs to get done,” Her mom lectured her as always and Belen didn’t even attempt to argue with her because she never argued with her mother. “We don’t even have a male lead for the video.”

“I-I was kind of thinking that maybe um…” Belen said in a small voice before looking down at her hands, always intimidated by her mother and what her mother’s opinion would be. “Maybe the video concept could kind of be like _The Body Guard_. You know, with Whitney and Kevin Costner? I thought that just might be a fun concept.”

Belen braced herself for her mother’s usual scoff followed by a remark about how stupid that idea was but to her surprise her mother said no such thing. In fact, her mother nodded her head approvingly.

“That could actually work really well,” Her mother said, agreeing with something Belen suggested for probably the first time in her life. “I’ll pass the idea on to the director right now. The sooner, the better. You should also consider who you want the male lead to be for the music video.”

“I get to pick?” Belen questioned, furrowing her eyebrows in confusion. “I thought it was up to some casting director.”

Her mother smiled at her in that way Belen hated.

It was a smile her mother gave her whenever her mother thought she was being stupid. Belen always felt belittled and ridiculous whenever her mother gave her that smile although she never voiced that opinion. Her mom always knew how to take her apart and Belen knew that telling her mother how that smile made her feel would only result in her mother saying something to make her feel even worse.

“Mija, you’re a big name in pop music now. It’s different than the last couple albums when people were just starting to get to know you,” Her mother told her and Belen listened to her words carefully. “There’s probably not a soul on this planet that doesn’t know your name. You can have anyone you want in your music video. Taylor Swift got Clint Eastwood’s son in her last music video but you can do better.”

“Anyone?” Belen asked, her eyes wide with the kind of decision that her mother was surprisingly giving to her. It would probably be the first decision her mother let her make within her entire music career.

Belen never got to make any decisions.

She never got to pick her outfits, never got to pick the songs she wanted to sing(not even allowed to sing her own songs she wrote), never got a say in where she went, and she didn’t even get to pick her own boyfriends. Her mother pushed her into dating her ex and Belen wasn’t even sure if the relationship had been real or not. Sometimes Belen thought it was but then other times she wondered if it was just another fabricated publicity stunt her mother invented.

“Anyone,” Her mother confirmed before reverting back to her normal self. “Just make sure he’s gorgeous. Don’t forget the image we’ve carefully curated for you over the past couple years. Girls want to be you and boys want to fuck you. The guy in the video has to be someone everyone would believe you’d fuck. If he looks like that Cumberbatch guy you like then they won’t buy into the rest of it.”

“That seems shallow,” Belen said quietly and her mother sneered at her.

“This music video isn’t about some poor simple looking asshole that you decided to take pity on and have sex with,” Her mother said bluntly and Belen didn’t blush. She was more than used to the way her mother talked at this point. “This video is about promoting the new album. It’s about two sexy people having fun together. That’s what people want to see.”

“I get it,” Belen told her mother as she gave up on trying to change her opinion. Her mom gave her a pointed look.

“You better,” Her mom told her, a warning look in her eyes. “Now make your decision quickly. You can pick anyone within reason. Maybe think about Michael B. Jordan. You two would look great together.”

“I’ll think about it,” Belen said, trying to be amenable.

“Good,” Her mom said before her attention returned to the phone in her hands. “Now I have to make a few calls to your publicist so just don’t take too long in making the decision. Time is not on our side.”

Belen didn’t say anything as her mother walked off, exiting Belen’s bedroom in the multi-million dollar mansion Belen and her mother lived in which was, of course, bought by the advancement that Belen's old record label gave her when she signed with them a few years ago.

It had been an odd past couple years for Belen.

Her new album was the third one she had put out in the past three years so she really hadn’t had a break in a while between recording her music and touring. Not that Belen didn’t like recording music and performing. Singing was her life’s passion but sometimes she just felt empty afterward. She didn’t feel like how she used to when she sang at fairs and for her family when she was a little girl. It used to be fun back then but Belen just wasn’t so sure anymore.

Her parents discovered that their daughter was a talented singer from a very young age.

It was probably when she was five and a Selena song came on the radio when they were in the car. Her older brother had seemed very unimpressed and unmoved by her talent, her father looked delightfully surprised but also proud, and her mother looked to be in deep thought. It was probably back then that her mother started thinking of ways to promote Belen’s singing career.

Belen wouldn’t have been surprised.

Belen’s mother started prepping her for talent shows at school where Belen always came in first place with the cute outfit her mother spent all night sewing for her as well as her cover of a Destiny’s Child song. It was all fun at the beginning. She remembered singing at her school’s talent show and watching the proud look on her father’s face as he sat in the audience. Her mother always looked indifferent, nothing was ever good enough for her.

It wasn’t so bad when her father was alive but after he died things got worse.

The day Juan Zavala died was the worst day of Belen’s life.

Her mother had always been cold but Belen’s father’s death made her even more so. It was like something snapped inside Mila Zavala and the Cuban-American woman became more determined than ever to get Belen out there. To make Belen seen and make sure Belen made it in the business.

Suddenly the talent shows weren’t enough anymore.

Belen’s mother nagged and nagged the event coordinators at local county fairs to get Belen a spot in performing at the fairs. It was unusual for someone Belen’s age to perform sets at the fair but Belen’s mother was overwhelmingly pushy and Belen had a stand out voice. It was a natural gift and not something you could just learn in a few lessons. Her father used to tell her that she sounded like an angel and Belen used to believe him. He always made it sound like she was meant for great things but now that Belen achieved those “great” things, they didn’t seem so great anymore.

However, that was a story for another time.

It actually wasn’t until Belen was ten that she sang the national anthem at a Florida Gators baseball game which was a huge honor for Belen. Her father had been a massive fan of the team and Belen felt like she was honoring his memory by singing in front of all those people on live national television. However, nothing was ever good enough for Belen’s mother.

The young Latina was taken out of public school and homeschooled as her mother wanted to focus on her singing. While other kids her age were learning at school and playing together at recess, Belen stood on a small stage in her grandparents' restaurant as she was made to perform for people for hours during the day and well into the night. Her mother said that she needed all the practice that she could get when it came to performing.

 _“Performing is half the job, Mija. You can’t just sing. You have to know how to move and interact with the audience,”_ Her mother used to tell her whenever Belen complained about her feet hurting from standing so long. _“Performing is something you can learn. Most girls can perform but they don’t have your voice. Your voice isn’t something they can just learn from a couple of singing lessons. You think Britney Spears wouldn’t kill for a voice like yours? That girl is one hell of a performer but her voice is shit. If you can perform and sing then you have it all.”_

Her mother would also dress her in outfits where she felt exposed. Crop tops with short skirts that were covered in sequins. Belen’s mother would then cover her face in makeup, making Belen feel much older than the young girl she was. Her mother said that being a singer who was a girl was much different than being a singer who was a boy. She said stuff about having to look sexy and seducing the audience which was something a boy never had to do. Girls had to be craftier about making it in the music industry.

So Belen’s life was filled with practicing her performing skills, working on her singing until it was nothing but perfection, and her mother dressing her up like some kind of Barbie doll or a prostitute. Her childhood entirely stolen from her by a woman who was supposed to love and nurture her. She distinctly remembered being twelve and looking out the window longingly as she watched her fifteen-year-old brother playing soccer in the backyard of their house with his friends. Belen always longed to join them but her mother always said no.

Singing was more important than playing games with her brother and his stupid friends.

Even though Belen’s brother was jealous of her and the attention their mother gave her but never him, he would’ve never guessed that _Belen_ was jealous of _him_. She was jealous of the number of friends he had, the normal stuff he got to do, and the fact that their mother didn’t smother him like she smothered her.

Her brother probably didn't know that she felt that way. They didn't speak that much anymore and Belen assumed it was because he blamed her for their mother  ignoring him for his whole childhood. David hated being Belen's brother. The forgotten sibling of a pop star. He might've envied her for being in the spotlight but Belen envied him for being _out_ of the spotlight.

So years passed by and as Belen became a teenager, she still hadn’t made it like her mother wanted. Pretty soon she was sixteen and they had sent her demo to almost every record company they could find but no one had made her any record deal offers. Her mother grew increasingly frustrated while Belen felt guilty for not being good enough.

She hated disappointing her mother.

 _“What are you doing wrong?! Taylor Swift made it when she was sixteen and she can’t even sing half as good as you!_ Her mother scolded her one night after being rejected by another record label. _“Fucking Taylor Swift!”_

 _“I’m sorry, Mama,”_ Belen said in a small voice, her eyes filled with tears as her mother glared angrily at her.

The record labels always gave Belen and her mother sympathetic looks, claiming that Belen was incredibly talented but she just wasn’t what they were looking for. Belen and her mother both knew what that meant. It meant that they weren’t looking for a tiny Hispanic girl who looked more like she was twelve than she was sixteen. They wanted another Taylor Swift. Another tall blonde white girl who could sing and play guitar a little bit but who also wrote catchy songs about her loser ex-boyfriends.

It then dawned on Belen and her mother that it didn’t matter how amazing of a singer she was. There were so many other things that factored into what made a pop star that Belen’s voice no longer mattered. It was all about image and less about your voice. If anything, it just motivated her mom to work harder to get her a record deal.

Her mother became desperate as Belen got older. She started becoming more manipulative and more conniving. She resorted to sleazy means that would make any corrupt politician shudder in disgust. However, it finally worked.

When Belen was eighteen she got her record deal.

How she got Belen a record deal was something that haunted Belen even to this day.

“Who are you going to pick?” Melissa asked and Belen was once again snapped out of her thoughts. It seemed she was always lost in her thoughts these days.

“What?” Belen questioned, still a bit lost as she tried to put all her thoughts to the back of her mind.

“The guy for your video. Who’s it going to be?” She asked again.

Melissa was Belen’s personal assistant who had also become Belen’s friend. Probably the first friend she ever had since she was six. The blonde woman was a few years older than Belen but she had also become Belen’s most trusted friend. Probably the only person Belen trusted. Belen didn’t even trust her own mother but for obvious reasons.

“Oh…I don’t know,” Belen said, still sounding spaced out as she sat on the edge of her bed. Her mind still in a million places. She was really finding it hard to be enthused by a lot these days. She knew she sounded ungrateful because a lot of girls would kill for her career but Belen just felt empty. Belen no longer felt like her life was her own and she would give anything to just go back to when she was six. The days where the craziest thing about her life was getting to go to the ice cream shop two days in a row.

“I already know who you’re going to pick,” Melissa said, giving her a knowing look and a smug smirk that Belen found annoying.

“I don’t think my mom would want him for the video. I think she wants Michael B. Jordan,” Belen said in a shy voice as she blushed. She knew exactly who Melissa was talking about but she just didn’t think it was possible. Melissa scoffed.

“Screw your mom,” Melissa told her bluntly and Belen’s eyes widened, a part of her worrying if her mom would hear her. “I agree that Michael B. Jordan is ridiculously hot and I would totally want to make out with him if I had a music video but this isn’t your mom or I’s music video. This is your music video so you should pick the hot guy you get to make out with.”

“I’d rather not make out with any random guy I don’t know,” Belen told her, being her usual boring self.

“Okay but if you had to make out with any hot guy, which you do for the music video, who would you pick?” Melissa asked her but the smirk on her face was unwavering. “Don’t lie to me, kid. We both know you have the hots for Bucky. Don’t deny it.”

“I don’t have the hots for him,” Belen said stubbornly but there was no denying the blush on her face. “I just think Bucky’s really misunderstood and needs a hug.”

Belen had never been into Marvel or anything.

It wasn’t that she was some kind of weirdo that had a vendetta against superhero movies. She just hadn’t had much time to watch movies. Her life was always all about her music career so Belen barely even had time to think much less watch movies. Usually, Belen just preferred watching early 2000s rom-coms because it was what she knew and it was what made her feel calm after a long day of recording or performing.

It actually wasn’t until a couple years ago when Melissa made her sit down and watch every movie from the MCU. Her friend looked very horrified to learn that Belen had never seen any of the films so she was determined to make a fan out of Belen. So a fan the Latina became. The short singer wasn’t hugely into the Iron Man or Thor films but she really liked the Captain America ones much to Melissa’s disappointment since Belen didn’t seem to think much of Loki. Although Melissa accused Belen of only liking the Captain America films because she thought Bucky was hot. This became obvious to Melissa from the moment Bucky first graced the screen in _Captain America: The First Avenger_.

 _“Who’s that?”_ Belen asked as she watched a man in uniform kick the ass of some asshole who was bullying poor Steve Rogers in an alley.

Ever since then, Belen harbored a small celebrity crush on Sebastian Stan. It wasn’t an obsessive crush or anything. Belen didn’t stalk his Instagram or kept up to date on Sebastian Stan news alerts but she knew enough about him to know his name even though she still called him “The guy who plays Bucky” because Belen was all about keeping it cool. He was also the name Belen gave whenever an interviewer asked her about her celebrity crush and he was the winning guy in Ellen DeGeneres’ game of “Who’d You Rather” because Belen just couldn’t pick any guy after his picture popped up on the screen.

Not even Ryan Gosling.

Belen was even mortified that apparently, he knew about the crush since some interviewer thought it would be an opportune moment to inform him that she had a crush on him. The actor appeared surprised and in disbelief but Belen exited out of the video before she saw anything else. She probably never would’ve admitted to the crush if she knew he would ever find out about it. Belen didn’t even know that he knew who she was.

“So get Sebastian Stan in the music video,” Melissa said like it was that easy. Belen sighed heavily.

“He probably wouldn’t want to be in it,” Belen said, not trying to get her hopes up. “He’s probably too busy doing movies to want to be in a music video.”

“He’s a man,” Melissa deadpanned, getting bored with arguing with Belen already. “If someone tells him that he gets to make out with Belen _and_ get paid then he’ll probably hop on a plane over here right now.”

“Melissa,” Belen whined, always hating it whenever her friend talked about her in the third person

 A part of her was worried someone would eventually hear Melissa and then there would be some nasty rumor going around that she talked about herself in the third person. There was already rumors going around that Belen demanded to be carried around places as well as that stupid rumor that she hired a guy just to cut her food up for her. Belen hated people thinking she was some kind of diva.

“It doesn’t hurt to try,” Melissa told her and Belen shrugged, knowing that her friend had a point. It’s not like he would actually agree to do her silly music video anyways. “Just have your people get in contact with his people and see what he says. The worst he can say is no and then that’s it. We’ll just get someone else. If he says no then definitely someone hotter.”

“Melissa,” Belen whined again but Melissa ignored her.

“Maybe we’d get Chris Evans. That would really show him,” Melissa suggested, a devious smile on her face which Belen didn’t think she liked.

“I’m not doing this with you,” Belen told her and laid back against her bed, covering her face with a pillow.

“You’re no fun today, Belen,” Melissa said before grabbing her iPad and starting to leave Belen’s bedroom. “Just make a list of back-ups for the video in case this Sebastian thing falls through. We're already behind enough on everything as it is. Let's try and keep your mom off both of our backs. She’s being bitchier than usual.”

“I don’t see a difference in her bitchiness. She seems like her fun usual self,” Belen said sarcastically and Melissa snorted before shaking her head.

“Get some sleep, okay?” Melissa told her boss but also her friend. “We’ve got a long next few weeks ahead of us between promoting the new album, it’s release, and shooting this music video. You need all the rest you can get.”

“Okay, Lisa,” Belen mumbled tiredly, already feeling herself drifting off to sleep. Promoting the new album was exhausting and Belen felt like she hadn’t slept at all in the past two months. Between countless interviews, soundchecks, performances, and long plane rides, Belen longed for a night she could sleep a full eight hours. Belen thought a full eight hours of sleep would be better than sex in her opinion.

She heard the door close behind Melissa and Belen was left alone in silence and darkness. A part of her acknowledged that this was probably the first time Belen had been left alone in weeks. It was seldom that anyone ever left her alone and Belen decided to appreciate it while she could because she knew it wouldn’t last long.

Belen drifted off to sleep that night with the relief of getting a break from her life for a few hours.

A few silent but peaceful hours that Belen savored.


	2. Chapter 2

It was an uneventful day for Sebastian.

The days after a big movie premiere like _Captain America: Civil War_ were always boring in comparison to the gigantic press tour he had been on less than a week before. A week ago he had attended a dinner party at Robert Downey Jr.’s gigantic mansion in LA but now he was back home in New York.

In his two bedroom apartment, drinking a beer by himself as he watched some boring reality television show that he had never seen before and could care less about. The point was that Sebastian was overwhelmingly bored.

The Romanian-American actor had already finished filming a couple of indie projects and he still had a little less than a year before he was due back to film the new Avengers movie. There was absolutely nothing on Sebastian’s agenda for the next amount of months. Not until something else came along, at least.

These were the days, sometimes weeks or months, that Sebastian hated the most.

The days of not knowing when your next job was going to come.

Don’t get him wrong.

Sebastian was doing more than well and he knew he was fortunate because most actors couldn’t get work at all but it was just boring sitting around while waiting for the next thing to come along. He imagined there were certain actors that didn’t have to wait around at all but Sebastian still hadn’t reached that point yet.

Sebastian thought it might be different if he was like Anthony who had a wife and kids. Anthony never minded having time off because he had a family to go back home to. Still...the thought of getting married and having children terrified him. He didn’t know why because he was thirty three, almost thirty four, but maybe that was why. He didn’t think about those things for so long and now that he was in his thirties, he was realizing that he wasn’t getting any younger. All his friends were married with kids of their own.

Well…except for Chris.

Sebastian just supposed that he and Chris were both the only ones in their group of friends that weren’t married and who didn’t have children. A couple of miserable old men. Probably not too different from their characters in the MCU, after all.

The actor was then interrupted from both his thoughts and the mindless reality show he was watching by his phone ringing. He was sad to say that he probably reached for his phone a little too quickly in the midst of all his boredom, setting his beer down on the probably too expensive coffee table one of his exes bought for him and he was too lazy to get rid of. Sebastian felt his heart skip a beat as he saw the picture of his agent on his phone. He waited a few seconds before answering because he didn’t want to seem too eager.

Sebastian took a deep breath before finally answering.

“Emily?” Sebastian said into the phone, deeply anticipating whatever job that Emily might have for him.

“Hey, Seb,” Emily greeted cheerfully. “I’m just calling to check up on you. How are you after that massive press tour? It looked exhausting.”

Sebastian felt a bit disappointed that she was only checking up on him and apparently not with any potential new roles for him. He knew he should be appreciative that Emily cared enough to check up on him but the disappointment about no film roles was a bit inevitable.

“I’m good. Thanks,” Sebastian answered her. “I’m just catching up on some sleep. Hitting the gym. Life as usual.”

Sebastian knew he sounded more like was trying to reassure her that he was alright instead of making simple conversation.

“Good…that’s good,” Emily told him before she paused for a moment and finally spoke, bringing something else to attention. “Okay, so the real reason I called you was actually because something really interesting came up.”

“Thank god,” Sebastian muttered, glad that Emily might have something for him, after all. “I’m getting a little stir-crazy over here. What do you have?”

“So keep in mind that it’s not technically an actual acting part or anything and it would only be a two or three day shoot,” Emily said, trying to be as convincing as possible. Sebastian furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.

“Two or three days?” Sebastian asked in confusion. Why such a short period of time?

“Well, it’s a music video, Sebastian,” Emily explained to him and this confused Sebastian even more. A music video? Did he hear Emily right?

“What do you mean a music video?” Sebastian questioned.

“I mean exactly that. Someone wants you to be the hot guy in their music video. Congrats,” Emily told him teasingly. “At least someone finds you attractive for whatever reason.”

“Thanks a lot,” Sebastian muttered, not entirely amused by Emily’s teasing. “A music video? I don’t really know about that.”

“Lots of actors are doing music videos now,” Emily informed him as she tried harder to be convincing. “Scott Eastwood, Sophie Turner, Idris Elba, Jake Gyllenhaal, and fucking Tom Hanks.”

“This isn’t like that weird thing Shia LaBeouf did in that music video, is it?” Sebastian asked, still very doubtful.

“No, it’s not,” Emily reassured him. “Her people sent me a brief outline of the concept for the music video. It’s basically inspired by _The Bodyguard_.”

“Who’s music video is this, anyways?” Sebastian asked, realizing that Emily neglected to give him that very important information.

“Belen,” Emily told him and Sebastian’s eyes widened at the name.

Not because he was Belen’s biggest fan.

It was just entirely surprising to him.

If Sebastian was being honest he really didn’t know much about her music. The radio seemed to be play the hell out of that ‘Dangerous Woman’ song of hers whenever he was in the car. Sebastian never realized that it was vocally possible for a singer to sound like they were having a musical orgasm until he heard Belen singing the pre-chorus of that song. He was impressed to say the least but that song, along with the song she did with Iggy Azalea a while back, were probably the only ones he knew.

Belen was another one of those singers that only went by one name like Beyoncé, Rihanna, and Adele before her. She was known for having such a powerful voice despite being incredibly short. Even though Sebastian didn’t really listen to her music, even he had to admit that her voice was insane.

There wasn’t much he knew about the popstar but he knew there was a bunch of crazy rumors about her. Stuff about her demanding to be carried around places like a baby or that she hired a guy to cut her food up for her. Sebastian wouldn’t be surprised since those popstar types seemed to also be the diva types. All the stuff with Taylor Swift, Rihanna, and Selena Gomez seemed to be evidence enough of that.

“Oh…” Sebastian trailed off and he kind of regretted sounding stupid but it was the only thing he could manage to say.

“Didn’t you tell me once that some interviewer said that she had a crush on you?” Emily asked, sounding really amused. Sebastian shrugged even though Emily couldn’t see him.

“She probably meant it as a joke or something,” Sebastian said nonchalantly.

“Probably not if she wants you to be the hot guy in her music video,” Emily said and he could tell she was trying not to laugh.

“She specifically wants me to be in the music video?” Sebastian asked, still in disbelief that someone like him was even on the radar of someone like Belen. He thought maybe Zac Efron or maybe even Chris was on her radar but not him.

“It would seem so,” Emily told him and Sebastian suddenly felt annoyed.

“Well, does little miss pop star know that I studied acting at the Globe Theatre in London?” Sebastian asked, feeling a little offended that the only part Emily had for him was to be the “hot guy” in some spoiled pop star’s music video. “I’ve worked too hard to get where I am to just be paraded around some twenty something-year-old pop star’s music video like a trophy and-“

“Well…Mr. _Covenant,_ ” Emily said sarcastically, silently telling Sebastian to get off his high horse. “Did I mention that three of her music videos currently have over a billion views on YouTube…a billion _each_.”

“Do you honestly think I’m so desperate that I’d-“ Sebastian started to say but Emily quickly interrupted him.

“You’d also get to make out with her for the entire shoot,” Emily finally said tiredly, appealing to the guy in her client. Sebastian swallowed hard as the wheels in his head started turning. There was complete silence before Sebastian cleared his throat and finally spoke in a small voice.

“When did you say that I have to fly out for this thing?”

 

* * *

 

 “You’re leaving now?” Anthony Mackie asked Sebastian. They were facetiming as Sebastian sat in the back of an Uber which was heading for JFK. It had been about a week since he accepted the offer to star in Belen’s music video.

“Yeah, I’m about twenty minutes from the airport and then my flight to LA leaves an hour later,” Sebastian told his close friend. Anthony grinned at him.

“Look at you, Sea Bass,” Anthony said teasingly. He never seemed to cease teasing him but he wouldn’t be Anthony if he didn’t tease him. “Going off to LA to spend the weekend with a hot barely legal popstar. Aren’t you living the high life.”

“She’s not barely legal,” Sebastian said, rolling his eyes at his friend. “She’s twenty three.”

“I told everyone that those blue eyes of yours are where home’s at,” Anthony said, continuing to pick on his friend. “No one took me seriously but my girl Belen knows what I’m talking about. She’s got taste…the same taste I have.”

“I’m not sure if that’s a good thing, Anthony,” Sebastian said doubtfully.

“I can’t believe how lucky you are. You know this is every man’s fantasy, right?” Anthony told him and Sebastian prepared himself for whatever ridiculous thing that was about to come out of Anthony Mackie’s mouth. There was never going to be a day where Anthony Mackie was boring. Sebastian was sure of it. “Some hot popstar comes along and casts you in her music video but the only catch is that you have to exchange saliva with her for a weekend. I’ve had this same dream before.”

“About Belen?” Sebastian asked in confusion and Anthony shook his head.

“No. It was actually about Beyoncé but it’s the same concept,” Anthony informed him and Sebastian just shook his head in amusement.

“You’re married, Anthony,” Sebastian reminded him and Anthony scoffed.

“I said it was a dream, smart ass,” Anthony retorted. “Not that I would ever act on it. Although my wife would understand if it was Beyoncé. She’d probably even be jealous of me.”

“I don’t know. I’m just dreading the long flight out to LA,” Sebastian said, changing the subject before Anthony made it weird. Although…Sebastian was pretty sure his friend had already made it weird. Anthony just rolled his eyes at Sebastian.

“No one’s going to feel bad for you,” Anthony told him before he started to mock him. “Oh, poor me. I have to fly all the way out to LA where I get to spend the entire weekend getting nasty with a hot twenty three-year-old woman who wants me. All the while I get paid. Yes, poor Sebastian. We’re all praying for you tonight.”

“Thanks for that,” Sebastian said sarcastically before Anthony continued.

“Fuck you. No one feels sorry for you. Stop trying to gain our sympathy because it only makes us hate you more right now,” Anthony told him and Sebastian realized that Anthony was probably the last person he should’ve talked about this to. Where was Chris when you needed him? Right…busy. Busy because he was obviously way more in demand than Sebastian and Anthony were which was obvious by the conversation they were currently having with each other. “Get on that plane and blow that popstar’s mind with those blue eyes of yours. Don’t just do it for you. Do it for me. I’m gonna be living vicariously through you this weekend. Just don’t tell my wife.”

“I’m going to go now. You’ve finally made it weird,” Sebastian told him and Anthony chuckled.

“Have fun, man,” Anthony told him encouragingly. “Tell me if she really gets carried around everywhere like a baby. Also text me if that feud with Rihanna is real.”

“Yes, I’m sure this is all information I can find out in a weekend,” Sebastian said sarcastically once again.

“Well, it’s back to the kids for me,” Anthony said, smiling as he finally bid his friend goodbye. Sebastian managed to return his smile.

“Yeah, I guess I’ll see you at the comic-con next month,” Sebastian told him, remembering the comic-con he, Anthony, and Chris where scheduled to attend. Anthony gave him a short nod.

“See you then,” Anthony said before he ended the call. Sebastian smiled to himself as he tucked his phone away in his pocket. Although the smile faded when Sebastian remembered that he was going to have to spend the weekend filming a music video which he had never done before. This was something that made him anxious since he was way out of his depth.

Emily mentioned something about him being the “hot guy” in the music video which Sebastian didn’t think he knew how to be. This was something for models. Not actors. Sebastian didn’t think he had any clue as to what he was doing.

He admitted he had done a little studying when it came to Belen. Studying for his roles was what he knew how to do so that’s what he did. He didn't really know what else to do, after all. 

Sebastian found out in his research that the young popstar was from Miami, Florida and that her mother was the daughter of Cuban immigrants while her father was Mexican but had passed away years ago. Apparently Belen had been singing from a young age, entering competitions and making the move out to LA when she was a teenager so she could get a record deal before she successfully received one when she was eighteen.

Since then the pop singer had successfully put out two albums, her third album coming out later in the month. She had around seven hit singles since she made her debut in 2013 and Sebastian had to admit that her music career was very impressive. Especially for someone so young.

 Not to mention she probably had around one hundred million more Instagram followers than him which was mind boggling. He could hardly believe there was a couple million people that were interested enough in his life to follow him but he couldn’t imagine having over a hundred million followers.

Sebastian really was out of his depth.

He even gave the song, in the music video he was supposed to be starring in, a listen. ‘Into You’ was like most pop songs, a very catchy song that he bobbed his head along to. The lyrics weren’t very impressive and Sebastian was sure it would be considered just another generic pop song if anyone else sang it but with Belen’s insane vocals, the song was something you could listen to over and over again. Not that Sebastian would ever admit that to Anthony who would probably only tease him.

The actor wasn’t going to lie and say that he wasn’t curious about the popstar who seemed ever so mysterious to him. He found her intriguing but he found most singers intriguing. Their lives were like puzzles people tried to put together from picking apart their song lyrics. Sebastian always wondered how they could be so open and vulnerable enough to share their deepest feelings and innermost thoughts with the world.

However, maybe Belen wasn’t so mysterious, after all. Maybe she really was the diva the media seemed to think she was. Sebastian really hoped not. He didn’t think he could handle three days with an entitled spoiled brat. He worked too hard to have to put up with a snobby popstar.

Sebastian knew it was probably bad if he kept worrying about a potential diva-ish popstar so he let his thoughts drift off to different things. Mostly about what drink he was going to ask for on the plane.

Because he was definitely going to need one if he was going to get through the weekend.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Belen and Sebastian finally meet on set of her new music video. They both defy each other's expectations despite prior judgements each possessed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's been forever since I updated this story. I had only just started it when I stopped updating. It was mostly due to the fact that I had writer's block when it came to Belen and Sebastian meeting but I got passed it. I was also wrapped up in school, work, and one of my other stories. Anyways...I'm here with a new update which I hope makes up for not updating. I thought I would update in honor of Sebastian's birthday which is tomorrow.

Belen realized that it was possible to feel alone in a room full of people. 

This was exactly how she felt as she sat in a chair on the set of her new music video. People were running around on set trying to get things done but Belen just felt alone as she watched them. It was almost like she was invisible to them which was ironic because she was kind of the reason they were all there.

She sipped on her bubble tea as she watched her mother scream at a worker. Belen had given up on trying to defend people from her mother’s actions a long time ago. It would usually just end up with Belen getting screamed at too so what was the point?

“So this is a big day on set,” Melissa told the popstar. Belen barely looked up from her drink. “I can’t believe Sebastian actually agreed to be in this music video. This is pretty exciting, huh?”

“I guess,” Belen said, sounding really uncomfortable and Melissa looked at her in confusion.

“What’s up? I thought you would be more excited about Sebastian Stan being in the music video,” Melissa said, trying to figure out what was making Belen feel so sad. It wasn’t unusual that Belen was in a sad mood. Her mom really seemed to bring that out of her.

“I guess I just feel a bit uncomfortable,” Belen admitted, blushing as she avoided looking her friend directly in the eye. Melissa’s confusion didn’t go away.

“Why?”

“Because I’m going to have to make out with a stranger and I’m completely freaked out about it, Lissa,” Belen finally blurted out, letting her friend know how awkward she felt about this music video. Melissa supposed she understood Belen’s anxiety over the music video. Despite being one of the biggest popstars in the world right now, Belen was very shy. She definitely wasn’t the kind of person that could sleep with a stranger much less kiss one. “I don’t even know him. How am I supposed to just make out with him in front of everyone?”

“But you find him hot, right?” Melissa said as she tried to soothe her friend’s worrying but Belen didn’t seem comforted.

“I mean, he’s good looking but I’ve never even met him before. I usually go on at least one date with a person before I kiss them,” Belen said, still looking scared out of her mind. Belen wasn’t a virgin or anything. She had a couple boyfriends in the past but she found that she was someone who had to be romanced a little before kissing or sex came into the conversation. “I’m not an actor, Lissa. I can’t just kiss a random guy and be super casual about it.”

“Okay so why don’t you two hang out when he arrives on set,” Melissa suggested, trying to find a way to calm Belen down. “You can get to know him a little so that way shooting any intimate scenes for the music video won’t feel weird. He’s probably a really nice guy and super professional too so I’m sure he’ll be really cool about the whole thing.”

“What if he hates me or something? What if he finds me repulsive?” Belen questioned, her eyes looking like they were about to pop out of her head. Melissa rolled her eyes.

“Honey, if he found you repulsive then he wouldn’t have agreed to make out with you for a music video,” Melissa told her, wondering how her friend could be so ridiculous even after all the fame that had come her way. It was kind of nice since that meant that Belen hadn’t turned into a huge asshole and lost her innocence to Hollywood but it also made Melissa worried about her. Belen could be naïve sometimes and Melissa wondered if the young singer could make it out of Hollywood in one piece. Belen certainly didn’t seem cut out for any of this and that scared Melissa.

“I guess you’re right. I’ll try not to think about it too much,” Belen said reluctantly and Melissa gave her a small smile.

“Good. Now I’m going to go take care of some stuff with your mom but I’ll be right back,” Melissa promised her. “Sebastian should be here in a couple hours. I got a text from his agent who said he landed at LAX so the driver should drop him off at his hotel soon before bringing him here.”

“That sounds great,” Belen said softly although she was starting to feel really nervous about the aspect of finally meeting Sebastian. It was one thing admiring him on screen but it was a whole other thing meeting him in person.

“Okay, just stay calm and don’t over think it too much,” Melissa told her knowingly because Belen was prone to throw herself into a panic even over the littlest of things. “It’s going to be fine.”

“I know,” Belen murmured and Melissa just smiled at her before turning around, walking in the opposite direction to go talk to Belen’s mother. The popstar stared after her for a moment before realizing she was alone again. Belen picked up her bubble tea once more and took another sip.

Somehow Belen felt like she was going to end up humiliated by the end of this shoot.

* * *

Sebastian’s flight had been long and he felt exhausted by the end of it. He had managed to get a couple hours of sleep at the hotel and even took a shower before his driver picked him up to take him to the location where they were shooting the music video. He was a bit worried since the location was apparently in the middle of nowhere in the desert. A part of him started to wonder if the whole thing was fake and they were taking him to be murdered.

Maybe it wasn’t Belen he was shooting a music video with but the cannibalistic family from _Texas Chain Saw Massacre_.

However, Sebastian was filled with a sense of relief when he spotted a motel in the midst of all the endless miles of desert. The film crew for the music video were already at work making the former ratty old motel look trendy and glamoured up enough for a Belen music video.

The driver pulled into the dirt parking lot and Sebastian wondered what he was in for.

He sincerely hoped that they didn’t expect him to be Belen’s back-up dancer or anything because that shit wasn’t going to happen. No one wanted to see that either. Sebastian was already starting to feel super uncool and old enough as it was and he wasn’t even on set yet.

“Mr. Stan, you’re here,” A cheerful looking blonde woman said as she approached him the moment he stepped out of the car. She looked like a kid. Probably several years younger than himself and Sebastian had no idea who she was. He sincerely hoped this wasn’t a famous singer that was accompanying Belen on this song for the music video.

Shit…

Was this Taylor Swift?

Sebastian tried to compare the girl in front of him to a mental image of Taylor Swift. They were both tall and blonde so that had to count for something. His agent never mentioned anything about Taylor Swift but maybe Sebastian should’ve asked if there was anything else he needed to know about this music video or Belen. All he really knew was the concept of the music video and the character he was playing.

Little else.

“I’m Melissa,” The woman introduced and Sebastian was relieved that he wasn’t so old that he wouldn’t recognize Taylor Swift if he met her. “Belen’s assistant. We’re so excited to have you on set, Mr. Stan. Thank you for taking the time out of your schedule to do this. We really appreciate it and I hope you’re liking your hotel room too by the way.”

“Thanks. The hotel room’s...great,” Sebastian said, feeling slightly overwhelmed by how fast the blonde was talking. “You can just call me Sebastian. Mr. Stan isn’t necessary.”

“Well do,” Melissa said, still looking giddy and excited. “I’d show you around but this is pretty much it.”

“It looks great,” Sebastian said, admiring the hard work the crew members put into the motel.

“We’ll be filming out here for the night shoots but we’ll be getting started fairly soon inside the motel room,” Melissa informed him. “The room’s already set up for shooting so you’re scheduled for that from about twelve thirty to four. Don’t worry there will be a lot of breaks in between then and later.”

“Okay,” Sebastian said although all this information was coming at him remarkably fast. He supposed he should get used to it since this was a music video shoot and not a film shoot. They didn’t have long to film the music video so everything was happening fast.

“The night shoot is from nine to midnight,” Melissa continued to inform him as she read the schedule from off her iPad. “Then we’re shooting at a different location tomorrow downtown LA. We rented out a space so it’ll feel much more private and secluded.”

“So we start filming in an hour?” Sebastian questioned and Melissa nodded.

“Yes, one hour,” Melissa confirmed and Sebastian gave her a hesitant look.

“Am I going to be able to meet Belen before then?” Sebastian asked her carefully. He wasn’t sure if this was the wrong thing to ask but he had to. Sebastian still couldn’t believe he was shooting this thing in an hour and he had yet to meet his co-star.

Well, there was a first time for everything.

“Of course, you can meet her,” Melissa said, practically beaming at Sebastian. “I totally forgot. My mind’s just really scattered today. There’s just so much to do.”

“That’s totally fine. I get it,” Sebastian said sincerely, giving the blonde a small smile. He felt sympathy for her since being the assistant of one of the most famous popstars on the planet must’ve been a really challenging job. He couldn’t even begin to imagine.

“Just take it easy on her. She’s really shy but she’s also a really sweet girl,” Melissa told him as she began to lead him towards the main area outside the motel. There were cameras already set up and the crew members were currently testing their equipment.

Sebastian didn’t know what to make of that information. Of course, he knew that most rumors were false. He knew all about false rumors but the rumors about Belen were very specific. Every other week there seemed to be a rumor of diva behavior and Sebastian hoped that he wouldn’t have to see any of that in real life.

“Belen!” Melissa called out and Sebastian looked around in an attempt to try and find the popstar.

However, he made a mistake.

He made a mistake because he was looking for a girl who was dressed in one of those one piece costumes popstars wore on stage. Sebastian made a mistake because he honestly didn’t know what to expect.

“Belen, look who arrived,” Melissa practically sang as she walked over to a very small looking woman sitting in a chair by herself. The person in question looked up and Sebastian immediately recognized her as the popstar in question.

Sebastian realized he probably missed her the first time looking around because she was so small. He heard rumors that she was very small but the rumors did her no justice. She was tiny and Sebastian would’ve thought she was even younger than her age if it wasn’t for the make-up she was wearing. As she stood up to greet him, Sebastian realized that she had to be at least a foot shorter than him. She didn’t even quite reach his shoulders.

The Latina’s hair was long and dark brown with blonde highlights. It was down from it’s usual high ponytail which the popstar was famous for. Her doe like eyes were a warm brown color and framed by thick dark eyelashes. Her smile was shy or so Sebastian observed. The brunette was wearing a robe over what must’ve been her outfit for the music video but Sebastian realized something about the mysterious popstar.

She was already way different than what he expected and they hadn't even spoken a word to each other.

“Sebastian, I’d like you to meet Belen,” Melissa introduced, giving the brunette a knowing smile that Sebastian didn’t see. “Belen, this is Sebastian as I’m sure you know.”

“Hi,” Belen said a bit shyly, not quite looking Sebastian in the eyes but she could’ve blamed it on the height difference. She had to crane her head to look up at him quite a bit.

If anyone asked, Belen would’ve lied but she clocked Sebastian from the moment he stepped out of the car. It was easy to pretend that she hadn’t been eagerly anticipating his arrival so when the moment came, Belen couldn’t help but stare. He was a very attractive man, after all.

Belen wouldn’t lie.

There was a handful of attractive men in Hollywood that flirted with her at parties but Belen only flirted back because her mom told her to. She was never interested in any of them. Certainly not drawn to their good looks which was why it stumped Belen why she was breathless at Sebastian’s stunning blue eyes and his warm smile as he looked down at her.

“It’s nice to finally meet you,” Sebastian told her, being polite and courteous because he was a professional and didn’t want to come off as rude despite his judgement of popstars. “This whole thing’s been shrouded in so much mystery that I was actually beginning to wonder if it was really you. I thought I was being catfished.”

“Well, no catfish this time. I can’t say the same for the other music video hiring ads,” Belen retorted playfully, surprising Sebastian by being kind of funny in a cute and dorky way.

“So I’ll just let the two of you talk. I have to go ask the director about something,” Melissa told them, giving Belen a smug smirk that Sebastian once again failed to notice. He did, however, give the blonde a small smile as she walked away and left the two of them alone.

“She seems nice,” Sebastian remarked, trying to make small talk with the small brunette to prevent an awkward silence. He was never really any good at not being awkward but Sebastian thought he’d give it his best shot.

“She is,” Belen said softly, her heart pounding as Sebastian’s attention seemed to be entirely focused on her. “She’s my best friend. As annoying as she can be sometimes.”

“I know how that can go,” Sebastian said understandingly. His own friends could be annoying too so he supposed he was in the same boat.

“Did you have a nice flight?” Belen asked shyly. It was her attempt at making small talk since she didn’t know what else to say. She cursed her awkwardness in situations like this. Sebastian probably thought she was an airhead or something.

Little did she know that Sebastian was the same.

Painfully awkward and really bad at talking to people.

“A little long but pretty okay,” Sebastian answered, giving the petite woman a small smile that made her blush. Belen just hoped that her skin was dark enough that he wouldn’t see the blush.

“That’s good,” Belen said before internally cursing herself for sounding so stupid. Why didn’t she seem to have anything to say? Now she just sounded stupid. “It’s been really busy around here for the past couple days. Everyone’s been trying to get everything done in time for the music video.”

“I can see that,” Sebastian said, looking around the set in awe. He didn’t know that so much production value went into music videos. Of course, that might’ve been a bit snobbish of Sebastian because it’s not like he had ever been on set of a music video. “It looks really amazing around here. Did you come up with the idea?”

“Some of it,” Belen said honestly, feeling a bit bashful all of a sudden. “I liked the idea of a motel in the desert. I thought it would fit in with the aesthetic for the video.”

“Usually I’m not one for sketchy looking motels in the middle of nowhere but this place seems alright,” Sebastian said, a teasing tone in his voice as he turned to look back at the singer.

“I’d probably stay here too,” Belen told him, smiling back at him. “The bed bugs are probably just a minor con.”

“Just a minor one,” Sebastian said in agreement although there was something almost flirtatious in his voice much to Sebastian’s surprise. He hadn’t meant to flirt but he had. What was even more surprising was the fact that Belen looked away from him shyly.

Sebastian had never been cocky or arrogant. Nor was he very talented at flirting. He always came off as the awkward human-being he was. Sebastian was always awkward but it had always been that way. When he was a struggling actor, having trouble paying off his student loan, and even now that he had achieved success and wasn’t struggling anymore. There was still a part of him that felt self-conscious about himself. Like, he was a fraud and didn’t belong with the other very talented people he worked with on a daily basis.

Which is why Sebastian found it shocking that he actually flirted with Belen and that she even responded to his awkward flirting on a receptive level. A part of him started to doubt what he had just seen because it didn’t make sense. She was around eleven years his junior and not to mention one of the most famous people on Earth at this point in time. Sebastian wasn’t blind either. He didn’t like to think of himself as a superficial person and he definitely wasn’t the type to flirt with younger women. That was something he never did but he couldn’t deny that the singer was very attractive. It was common knowledge that she was beautiful.

So why would she even be affected by his weird and awkward flirting?

“So how do these things usually go?” Sebastian asked Belen, immediately changing the subject. He suddenly felt like a teenage boy again. Desperately wishing that he hadn’t made things awkward with a pretty girl which was exactly something that always happened to the teenaged him. “You know, I’ve done a lot of different things. Stage, films, and television but I’ve never worked on a music video before.”

“I’m the opposite. All I’ve done are music videos. Nothing else,” Belen said, sounding a bit amused before she verbally walked Sebastian through what the filming process would entail. “It can be a little daunting but it should be simple. There’s no talking or anything. I lip sync to my own lyrics which is really embarrassing to do when everyone’s watching. There’s some product placement here and there but otherwise, it’s easy. Probably pretty boring for someone like you.”

“Someone like me?” Sebastian questioned and Belen realized that she probably said too much.

“I meant that you’re an actor. Mostly just models do these music videos,” Belen said before widening her eyes, realizing that she might’ve insulted him. “I mean, you could be a model too if you wanted. Not that I think you’re not a great actor because you are but I…I should just stop talking now.”

Sebastian chuckled at her rambling but deep down he was taken back in surprise by how different she was than he originally expected. He didn’t really know what he expected from her initially. Maybe a bratty popstar who would completely ignore him and keep her attention on her phone. In reality, the singer seemed very shy and maybe just as awkward as him. That was saying a lot since Sebastian was probably the most awkward person ever.

“You’re a lot funnier than I expected,” Sebastian said although he couldn’t deny the blush that came over his own face.

“Thanks,” Belen said quietly, glancing away from him and pretending to find something interesting in whatever the sound guys were doing.

Sebastian observed that there was something very innocent about the young popstar standing before him. He didn’t know what it was. She just seemed too innocent and gentle to have been in this sort of industry this long. 

“I’m sorry I’m being a bit weird, aren’t I?” Belen said after a moment of silence. Sebastian shook his head.

“I don’t think so. Well, I just met you so you could just be a weird person all the time for all I know,” Sebastian told her jokingly.

“I just start overthinking things and freak myself out in the process,” Belen said without thinking. Sebastian gave her a confused look.

“Why would you freak yourself out?” He asked her and Belen bit her lip nervously. An action that brought Sebastian’s attention to her lips. Even if it was only for a short second.

“I’m not an actor or anything. I don’t know how to feel normal about any of this,” Belen said and she wondered why she was voicing her fears to Sebastian who was a man she only met maybe fifteen short minutes ago. Sebastian didn’t look any less confused.

“You’ve done lots of music videos before,” He told her and Belen sighed.

“Not one like this.”

That was the only thing Belen said about the situation but Sebastian somehow knew exactly what she meant.

She was uncomfortable about kissing him.

To Sebastian this wasn’t a big deal. In many roles he had, Sebastian had love interests and sometimes the part called for intimate scenes. Scenes that were far more intimate than kissing. This wasn’t weird or anything for Sebastian since he was an actor and it was all part of the work he put into his roles. If work called for it then he had no problem with it. However, Sebastian understood that Belen wasn’t an actor and felt scared.

Something about the look on her face in that moment gave him the overwhelming urge to protect her. He realized that sounded crazy but she looked so vulnerable and frightened in that moment that Sebastian couldn’t help but feel that way.

“It can be a little weird but there isn’t a need to feel uncomfortable or anything. You know, I get that it’s weird. Sometimes I forget how weird it is because it’s just a part of my job,” Sebastian said, trying to think of the best way to sooth someone in Belen’s position. “We don’t know each other and it’s weird but just think of it as one of those awkward seventh grade party things.”

“I don’t really know what that means,” Belen said, trying to decipher Sebastian’s words.

“Seven minutes in heaven or spin the bottle. Those games we played as kids. Games that everyone cringes over twenty years later,” Sebastian said jokingly but Belen just shook her head, suddenly looking very shy.

“I didn’t really do any of that. Before all this, I was just training to be… _this,_ ” Belen told him and Sebastian was struck by how odd her words were. He didn’t really understand what she meant by that.

“You didn’t miss out on much,” Sebastian told her and Belen smiled even though she didn’t believe him when he said that. Everyone told her the same thing but Belen still felt like she had lost a significant amount of her childhood. She felt as though she was never allowed to be a child.

“Well, maybe you can think of it as one of those seventh grade party things you luckily missed out on,” Sebastian said helpfully. “I know it’s been a long time since I’ve been in the seventh grade. You...probably not so much.”

“Hey!” Belen said, pretending to sound offended. “It was still a long time ago. Even for me.”

“Be honest. How long was it, really?” Sebastian retorted and Belen blushed again before reluctantly admitting how long it had been.

“Ten years,” Belen told him and Sebastian laughed.

“Ten years?” Sebastian said in disbelief although he already figured it had been somewhere close to that long from knowing Belen’s age. “You’re making me feel way older than I want to feel.”

“You’re not old,” Belen told him and it was true. She didn’t think he was old. She knew he was about ten or eleven years older than herself but that didn’t make him old.

“I’m almost thirty four. Compared to you, I’m very old,” Sebastian told her and Belen just smiled at him. “I’ve gotten more wrinkles lately. I found a gray hair the other day so that’s another sign.”

Belen didn’t think he had wrinkles like he said. As she observed his face, she could clearly see that his so called wrinkles were probably just laugh lines. As for gray hair, he’d probably look very attractive with gray hair. He would probably be giving off hot English professor vibes. The kind of stuff that was probably the subject of fanfiction about him on Tumblr. Belen never dipped her toe in that particular pond because she felt like it was an internet spiral that there was no turning back from.

“Well, my abuela always says that the most annoying thing about men is how much they age well,” Belen told him as she almost flirted with him. Her form of flirting was always almost flirting because Belen didn’t think she would ever be the confident person to step up and flirt with a guy. She was never assertive that way so she stuck with something she called "almost" flirting because it was the only thing she felt comfortable with doing. “Except for Sylvester Stallone. I don’t think he’s aged very well.”

“Hopefully I age better than Sylvester Stallone,” Sebastian told her, amusement in his eyes and Belen couldn’t help but smile back.

“Hopefully.”

“Look, I get how weird this must be for you so if you ever feel uncomfortable then just tell me, okay?” Sebastian told her and Belen felt floored by his sudden statement. There was a hidden promise in his eyes and it was clear that he meant this. Belen just couldn’t believe he was that sweet and understanding. Most people probably would’ve rolled their eyes at her or even laughed. Belen knew her mother would’ve told her to grow up. She just felt touched by his kindness. “We don’t have to do anything you’re uncomfortable with. I know that I’m a lot older than you and that’s why you-“

“It’s not because you’re older than me,” Belen interrupted much to Sebastian’s surprise. She then took the time to elaborate. “I’m not a prude or anything but I just don’t go around kissing random people I don’t know. I just like taking things slow. Usually I wait until after the first date for the kiss at the end of the night.”

“Oh…” Sebastian said, trying to think of something to say. Belen was just starting to believe that Sebastian thought she was immature and silly when he surprised her by suggesting something both crazy but reasonable. “If it makes you more comfortable I can make this feel more like a date.”

“What?” Belen inquired, raising an eyebrow and the actor blushed before explaining himself.

“I just meant that it _can_ be a date,” Sebastian suggested and he felt a bit self-conscious at the way the Latina stared at him.

“Probably a blind date since we just met today. Have you ever been on a blind date?”

“A couple times,” Belen answered, not knowing whether the actor was incredibly crazy or just incredibly sweet. She thought he was a bit of both but sweet overall.

“So there you have it,” Sebastian said, giving her a satisfactory smile. “It’ll probably be weird since I know no matter what, the date will end in a kiss at the end of the night. Good or bad. That probably takes a lot of pressure off. I wonder why all dates can’t be like that? It would make everything so much easier.”

“You’re telling me,” Belen muttered. She finally felt understood in that moment because she suddenly wasn’t the only who got anxious over small things like dates or just things that seemed small and insignificant. Here was a man eleven years her senior and he still had anxiety over the same things.

“So show me around set,” Sebastian told her and Belen gave him a doubtful look.

“That’s your idea of a date?” Belen teased and Sebastian laughed. Belen was instantly charmed by the crinkling of his eyes when he laughed.

The singer then told herself not to become too entranced by Sebastian Stan. He was only an actor that was hired by her record label to be in her music video. He was probably just humoring her. The weekend would pass soon enough and he would probably go back to filming movies when it was all over. He would have an interesting story to tell the line of more age appropriate women he probably went out with. A story about the time he spent a weekend with a very weird yet disappointingly boring popstar.

It was so easy for Belen to get attached.

All it took was a guy to smile at her and tell her that she was beautiful then hook, line, and sinker. When Belen fell in love, she fell hard and almost always got her heart broken in the end. You would think she learned this lesson enough that she would be more careful to not wear her heart on her sleeve but apparently not. Time and time again, she would continuously get burned by handsome musicians who only cared about pleasing their record label while also having a bit of fun at the same time if they could.

Belen was really not looking to get her heart broken yet again which was why she needed to start thinking rationally. Sebastian was gorgeous but she couldn’t let herself get distracted. She had to film the music video and then focus on promoting her new album.

Her album.

Yes, that’s where her mind needed to be right now.

“There doesn’t seem to be a lot of options in the middle of a desert,” Sebastian told Belen, gesturing around him to the expanse of nothingness. She smiled.

“I’m not really dressed for a date,” Belen told him, referring to the robe she was wearing over her outfit for the music video. Sebastian managed to gain enough confidence to actually smirk at her this time.

“You could wear a burlap sack and still make me look like a pile of dirt standing next to you,” Sebastian told her bluntly and Belen’s face turned red at his remark. Of course, she honestly doubted that because Sebastian was certainly the most gorgeous guy she had ever seen. There was no way he could ever hope to resemble a pile of dirt. If he did then it must’ve been the most attractive pile of dirt Belen had ever seen.

“You should just see me in the morning,” Belen said nervously, attempting to brush off Sebastian’s compliment before gesturing to her face. “There’s really talented make-up artists that spend hours to achieve _this_. I look horrifying in the morning.”

“That almost sounded like an invitation,” Sebastian said, clearly teasing her but there was a certain mischievous twinkle in his eyes that made Belen’s face turn redder if that was possible. “I don’t think horrifying would be a word I’d use to describe you.”

“You know what I meant,” Belen said, sounding appalled with him and Sebastian laughed again.

“You’re way easier to rile up than I would’ve imagined,” Sebastian told her and Belen pretended to be annoyed, crossing her arms as she playfully glared at him.

“I don’t know what you imagined but I’m not going sit here and let you make fun of me all day. It didn’t take you long to make yourself comfortable here, did it?” Belen complained although it was clear she wasn’t offended by Sebastian’s flirtatious remarks in the least.

“It really didn’t.”

“Come on, I’ll show you around set before you say something to make me call security and have you thrown off set,” Belen told him as she started walking towards the motel and Sebastian raised his eyebrows before he started following her.

“You’re not one of those popstars that has a bunch of bodyguards, are you?” Sebastian said jokingly but he stopped in his steps when he happened to notice a very tall and muscular Hispanic man standing a distance away. The man was staring at him in suspicion and Sebastian almost gulped because the guy was terrifying. The guy looked like he could kick Sebastian’s ass without even breaking a sweat.

“I have _one_ and his name is Manuel,” Belen said nonchalantly as Sebastian resumed following her while keeping a wary eye on the bodyguard named Manuel. “He retired from his twelve years of service in the military last year. Don’t let his rough exterior fool you. He’s a huge sweetheart on the inside.”

Sebastian glanced at the man again and he honestly doubted Belen’s words. The man resembled very little of a sweetheart as he stared Sebastian down. Even as he turned to look away from Belen’s bodyguard, he could still feel the man’s eyes burning a hole into the back of his head.

If looks could kill...

“I’m sure he is,” Sebastian replied to her, his voice laced with doubt but Belen paid him no attention as she started giving him a tour of the set. She pointed out certain details that had been added on to the motel they were currently at for the music video. He listened intently but only one thing seemed to be on his mind as he obediently followed her around set.

Belen was way different than he initially imagined.

A good different.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sebastian and Belen get to know each other a better on set of the music video. Sebastian discovers a hideous truth about Belen's life behind closed doors.

“So what’s Robert Downey Jr.’s whole deal?” Belen asked Sebastian. The two were currently leaning against the outside wall of the motel. Manuel was keeping a very close eye on Sebastian while Sebastian tried not to let the man get to him _. He’s just doing his job by making sure Belen’s safe_ , Sebastian told himself.

 A bodyguard, really?

A real one?

Well, it sort of made sense. Belen was an internationally famous popstar so it made sense that she needed protection when she was that much in the public eye. Sebastian couldn’t imagine having someone shadowing you all the time. It must’ve been annoying.

Even so, Sebastian found that it was easy to forget Manuel’s close eye as he and Belen chatted.

Belen and Sebastian had spent the past half an hour getting to know each other. Some things they already secretly knew about each other. For instance, Sebastian knew that Belen was from Miami while Belen was aware that Sebastian was originally from Romania. Just internet stuff they easily could’ve found out about each other.

The two seemed to be lost in their own little world as they talked. Sebastian couldn’t ever remember talking to someone this young for this long. Maybe Holland but the kid was even a few years younger than Belen so Sebastian didn’t immediately count him in that group. Besides…Belen seemed a lot more mature than Tom which made it easy to forget that she was much closer in age to the English actor than she was in age to him.

“What do you mean his “whole deal”?” Sebastian asked, his eyes filled with amusement as he looked down at the petite singer. Belen shrugged.

“I don’t know. He’s like the most famous person in the world so I’m debating whether or not he’s super chill and laidback or if he’s the most Hollywood you can get,” Belen elaborated and Sebastian chuckled at her phrasing.

“I don’t know about super “chill”,” Sebastian said sarcastically and Belen rolled her eyes playfully. “Downey’s Downey. I don’t know how else to describe him. He’s laidback but at the same time he’s very ostentatious. Not in a bad way or anything. He’s definitely an enigma.”

“I feel like he would be one of those people you only meet once in a lifetime,” Belen said after considering everything Sebastian just told her. He smiled before nodding.

“That’s probably the most accurate description of Downey I’ve ever heard,” Sebastian said in agreement before giving Belen a curious look. “You know, I’ve always been a bit curious about the music industry side of things.”

“Why? Are you thinking about crossing over and pursuing a music career?” Belen asked, giving Sebastian a teasing smile. He immediately shook his head.

“Not at all,” He was quick to say. “It’s a known fact that I can’t sing. I’m completely tone deaf.”

“I’m sure that’s not true,” Belen said reassuringly. “You can probably sing better than you’re willing to admit.”

“If you heard me sing, you would immediately take that back,” Sebastian retorted and Belen raised her eyebrows at him.

“Are you offering to sing?” Belen asked him. Sebastian furiously shook his head.

“No way in hell and especially not in front of you,” He said adamantly and Belen laughed.

“Not in front of me? What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You have this superhuman singing voice and you’ve won Grammy’s. I’m not singing in front of you,” Sebastian told her, seeming quite firm on the fact that there was no force in heaven or hell that would make him sing in front of her.

“I’ve actually never won a Grammy before and superhuman isn’t the word I’d use for the register I sing in. Superhuman is probably reserved for Celine Dion, Adele, and Rihanna,” Belen quipped and Sebastian gave her a partially shocked look.

“How have you never won a Grammy?” He asked her and Belen blushed because he seemed genuinely shocked that she hadn’t. His shock was a little flattering if she was being perfectly honest. Granted, Sebastian never listened to Belen’s music that much in the past but he always heard about singers a lot less talented than her winning Grammy’s so Sebastian just assumed.

“How have _you_ never won an Oscar?” Belen threw back at him and Sebastian scoffed.

“Because I’m already struggling to find work enough as it is. Oscar worthy material isn’t exactly flooding my inbox,” Sebastian’s voice was full of humor but there was an underlying truth in his eyes that seemed to resonate with Belen. Something that told her that he wasn’t just joking.

“Maybe not but I’m sure one of these days you’ll look in your inbox and something will be there,” Belen told him kindly and Sebastian wondered if she was just saying that to be nice or if she really meant it. She had to have seen some of his work, after all, if she wanted him in the music video but Sebastian just didn’t know whether or not she was being sincere or just nice. Sebastian didn’t take compliments too well so he just smiled at her instead.

“So tell me some other stuff about you,” Sebastian said as he started to change the subject.

“What kind of stuff?’

“Just something you would tell someone on a first date,” Sebastian elaborated and Belen couldn’t believe he was still keeping up this blind date charade just for her own comfort. She kind of wished he would stop being sweet and awkward because that was a really good way for him to get her to fall in love with him. Not that he would be aware of that but it was just a fact that Belen knew about herself. It was easy for Belen to fall for someone and she didn’t think it took much. “Siblings?”

“I have an older brother who lives in Miami. He’s married,” Belen answered although Sebastian didn’t fail to notice the uncomfortable look on her face. “We’re not very close.”

“I’m sorry,” Sebastian said softly, not having meant to make her sad. Belen only shrugged.

“It is what it is,” She said as though it didn’t make a difference to her but Sebastian could tell by how tense her shoulders were that it did happen to make a difference. “What about you? Siblings?”

“Nope,” He told her with a soft smile. “I’m an only child.”

“Parents?”

“Divorced. Dad wasn’t really in the picture,” Sebastian told her a lot more nonchalantly than he thought possible. Normally this wouldn’t even be the kind of stuff he would divulge out on a first date but there was something easygoing about what he and Belen were currently doing. He didn’t feel quite as guarded. Maybe because it was that sense of vulnerability and innocence he picked up from her. It made her instantly a lot more trustworthy than most strangers were to him. “Your parents?”

“It’s just my mom and I. My dad passed away when I was seven,” Belen said softly, her doe eyes displaying the subtlest hint of melancholy as she looked at him. “My mom…well, she’s kind of complicated.”

“Complicated?” Sebastian questioned, not understanding what she meant by that. He was sad to hear about her father although he thought he recalled hearing about that somewhere but he couldn’t remember where.

God…what a pair they were.

Dead dad and absent dad.

“She cares a lot for me. I think she just wants me to be the best version of myself,” Belen admitted to Sebastian, avoiding his gaze as she spoke. Sebastian furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. He still didn’t understand the meaning behind her words. None of it made much sense.

“Sebastian?” Melissa said as she approached them. They tore their gazes from each other to look over at the tall blonde woman. She smiled brightly at them. Notably, her smile morphed into a knowing one as she glanced at Belen. “They need you in the trailer for your fitting.”

“I’ll head over there then,” Sebastian told the blonde with a warm smile before returning his attention to Belen. “I guess I’ll see you later, kid.”

“I’m not a kid,” Belen protested although she knew Sebastian was only teasing her given by the smirk on his lips. “I’m twenty three.”

“You’re a kid compared to me,” Sebastian pointed out but he didn’t give her a chance to respond as he walked off in the direction of the costume trailer. Manuel watched his every step closely as the actor walked away. However, Belen didn’t feel like telling Manuel off for treating Sebastian like a criminal which he seemed to treat every guy Belen talked to. She was too distracted to even acknowledge the tall and imposing man.

“So I take it things are going well between you and Mr. Winter Soldier,” Melissa said smugly and Belen finally tore her gaze from Sebastian’s disappearing figure. He was well out of ear shot now so the Latina fixed her friend with a glare.

“We’re getting along if that’s what you mean,” Belen said shortly. She really didn’t feel like taking anymore of Melissa’s teasing. Belen was already feeling on edge enough due to the weird intensity between herself and the handsome actor. She felt like she was going to say or do something stupid to embarrass herself in front of him and Belen wouldn’t be able to leave her house ever again. That’s the feeling Sebastian Stan seemed to give her.

“There seems to be a lot of chemistry there,” Melissa pointed out and Belen rolled her eyes at her.

“There’s no chemistry. You heard him…he called me a kid,” Belen informed her but Melissa didn’t seem bothered by this information. She just started looking something up on her iPad but there was still no mistaking the smug look on her face.

“Well, he certainly wasn’t looking at you like he would a kid.”

Belen watched as her friend walked away, leaving her to think over that singular statement by herself. She wasn’t sure if she really believed Melissa. For some reason, she found it hard to believe that Sebastian was looking at her in any way let alone in a way that wasn’t similar to how someone would look at a kid. Great…an hour into Sebastian’s arrival and she was already caught up in him. Belen was deathly afraid what spending the whole weekend would entail.

She supposed she would just have to find out.

* * *

“Have you ever ridden a motorcycle?” Rebecca, the director of the music video, asked a wide eyed Sebastian. Belen and Sebastian had been driven to what looked like an abandoned highway through the desert area they were currently located in. Melissa and Belen’s mother were there too as well as most of the crew members as they finished setting everything up for the first take they were going to film.

Sebastian hadn’t yet had the chance to introduce himself to Belen’s mother but he found it difficult to find the right opportunity. The woman was glued to her iPad with a very stern look on her face. So much that Sebastian found her to be very intimidating. Which was odd given her height. If it was possible she was even shorter than Belen. Probably around 4’11 or 4’10. She looked to be somewhere in between her late forties and early fifties. Sebastian noticed the way everyone seemed to walk around the woman on eggshells and got the feeling that she was the one running the show. Probably Belen’s manager…or _momager_ in other words.

“I did for _Civil War_ so I have some training but my stunt double did most of the work so I-“ Sebastian started to say but Rebecca interrupted him with a bright smile.

“Perfect then you’re all ready to go,” Rebecca told him as one of the sound guys practically shoved the helmet in his arms. Sebastian just stared at her in disbelief.

“So at one point, one of the stunt guys is probably going to step in, right?” Sebastian asked cautiously, glancing in between the helmet and insane director.

“There’s no stunt guys here so no. It’s going to be all you,” Rebecca informed him and Sebastian’s eyes widened in horror.

No stunt guys?

So Sebastian was just going to drive the motorcycle on his own? He was going to drive it even though he had probably only ridden one maybe three or four times in his entire life. Those times didn’t really count either since he was supervised the entire time by the stunt coordinator on _Civil War_. They actually expected him to just take this motorcycle out on the road with Belen on the back?

Belen who was probably worth millions and millions of dollars.

Somehow everyone thought it was a good idea to put her life in Sebastian’s hands. He started panicking really quickly after that. It was so easy to lose himself in the idea that he could be the guy to not just kill himself doing a music video but to also kill one of the biggest names in pop music today. The world would never forgive him.

Sebastian would probably never forgive himself.

Even after only spending an hour or so with her, he really liked the popstar. She was kind, warm, and adorable. There was something innocent about her too that seemed to bring out a more protective side in Sebastian so it would kill him to see any harm come to someone as sweet and adorable as the small brunette.

“Right…” Sebastian muttered as he stared at the helmet in his hands. However, his attention was taken away from the helmet a moment later when he witnessed a conversation between Belen and her mother.

“I’m not doing that. I don’t even know him. I literally met him an hour ago, “ Belen said in a hushed whisper as she seemed to be engaged in an almost heated argument with her mom. Sebastian watched the two curiously as he tried to be discreet about his eavesdropping.

“Don’t be a child, Belen,” Her mother hissed at her, looking incredibly annoyed with her. “You need to think about upping the game for this music video. You’re the one who wanted to title the album ‘Dangerous Woman’. You can’t just call your album ‘Dangerous Woman’ and not have the image to go along with it. This is a new phase in your music career and you have to show how much you’ve matured.”

“I chose to name the album ‘Dangerous Woman’ because the song is my favorite off the record,” Belen argued, trying to put up a good point against her mother. “And I have matured. My music is completely different on the new album and I think people will realize that when they listen-“

“I’m not talking about your music,” Mila hissed and Sebastian was immediately taken back by the tone she used when talking to her daughter. “I’m talking about your image. You can’t just lay it all out there like Miley Cyrus but you can’t be the girl next door like Taylor Swift either.”

“I don’t feel comfortable with what you want me to do,” Belen said softly but it was clear to her that her mother didn’t care.

“He’s an actor. He’s used to these kinds of things,” Her mother told her. Sebastian furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. He didn’t know what they were talking about but he assumed it must’ve had something to do with the music video. Still…he didn’t get why her mother seemed to have little care as to whether or not she was comfortable with something. “None of it’s real. You know that.”

“There’s people watching and I just don’t know-“ Belen started to say as she panicked and her mother suddenly grew very cold. It was enough to even give Sebastian chills.

“You need to grow up, Belen. You’re not a fucking child anymore,” Her mother told her coldly. Sebastian glanced at Belen to see if she would snap at her mom or even just glare at her but she did neither of those things. In fact, the brunette seemed to shrink back into herself and avoid her mother’s gaze. “Besides…this should be easy for you. Given just how you got to where you are now, this is nothing.”

Sebastian narrowed his eyes at Belen’s mother.

What the fuck was that supposed to mean?

He quickly glanced back at Belen and noticed how the singer was on the verge of tears. Sebastian felt a pang in his chest as he watched her. He couldn’t help it. She just seemed so kind and innocent that watching her being snapped at like that was the equivalent of watching a puppy getting kicked.

Sebastian was about to step in when Belen wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her jacket, her mother pointedly ignoring her as she returned her attention to her phone.

“I’m just going to ask Melissa something,” Belen mumbled as she walked away from her mother who didn’t even give her a second glance. Sebastian watched her worriedly for a moment before his eyes darted back to her mother.

He hadn’t even met the woman yet and Sebastian already disliked her.

“I see you’ve gotten a taste of Mila Zavala,” Rebecca said, noticing Sebastian glaring at Belen’s mother. “This is my third music video and that woman’s just a nightmare. She once screamed at Belen for eating a doughnut from the catering table.”

“What?” Sebastian questioned in disbelief, turning away from Belen’s mother to look at Rebecca. The director nodded solemnly.

“She’s probably starving the poor girl,” Rebecca said and normally Sebastian wasn’t one for gossip but he felt concern for the singer. “She keeps her on a ridiculous diet like one grapefruit in the morning, no lunch, and maybe a salad for dinner. I mean, look at her. That girl’s already skinny enough.”

“But Belen’s twenty three,” Sebastian said, still in disbelief over how a parent could treat their daughter like that. A grown daughter at that.

Rebecca just shrugged.

“That’s true but Mila’s one of those stage moms. She’s made sure to insert herself into every part of Belen’s life,” She informed Sebastian who hung on to the director’s every word. “She’s been prepping Belen for this ever since she was a little girl. Singing competitions, gigs, auditions, and yelling bloody murder at every record label who rejected Belen’s demos. Belen’s basically a grown up version of those pageant girls with a crazy mother who have their kids all brainwashed.”

“That’s…terrible,” Sebastian said, glancing back at the singer in question who was clearly not fully engaged in a conversation with Melissa. There seemed to be a lot on the brunette’s mind as she chatted with her friend. Her brown eyes seemed very distant and this was something Sebastian definitely noticed.

“It’s crazy the amount of control that woman has over Belen’s life. She’s in charge of what she wears, what she does, who she’s friends with, and even who she dates,” The director continued to tell Sebastian who looked back at her with wide eyes. “She dated Maluma for a year and a half but only because her mom orchestrated the set up. A couple years ago she dated the Weeknd for a few months because her mom was trying to hype up ‘Love Me Harder’. She dated a Jonas brother earlier this year because her mom wanted to get her publicity for the new album.”

“Belen doesn’t argue with her mom because I honestly think she’s just tired of trying,” Rebecca told him before giving him a more serious look. “I’m only telling you this because I want you to know that it’s better to stay out of that woman’s way. I tried intervening once and she threatened to have me blacklisted. I know she can do it too. She’s done it before.”

“So you just ignore everything then?” Sebastian asked, raising his eyebrow at the woman. He couldn’t believe she told him all that and then ended it with telling him to keep his mouth shut. Rebecca just shrugged.

“Belen’s a nice girl and I feel bad for her but not enough to get blacklisted,” Rebecca said casually and Sebastian fought the urge to scoff. He was about to question why the hell she still directed Belen’s music videos if her mother was that bad but then he realized something.

He realized that he knew the exact reason Rebecca didn’t quit directing Belen’s music videos and probably why all the crew members stuck around with Belen’s nightmare of a mother on set. It wasn’t because they were trying to protect Belen or that they even liked Belen. It was none of those reasons.

 It was because they got a hefty paycheck for working on the music videos.

Belen was nothing but a piggy bank to all these people. The crew members, the director, and Belen’s mom just looked at her and saw a golden goose. They were using her.

Fucking parasites.

Sebastian had always heard about things like this happening but he never witnessed it firsthand. He couldn’t exactly explain why this pissed him off so much. It’s not like he knew Belen that well. There was just something about the way she was apparently being treated that struck a chord with him.

“Right…” Sebastian trailed off, not knowing how to respond to the director other than snapping at her.

“Guys we’re on in ten minutes,” One of the crew guys announced and Sebastian’s attention was taken away from the director. He didn’t know what happened after that. Everything happened so quickly and soon Sebastian found himself on the motorcycle with the helmet on his head.

He felt uneasy as he sat on the seat of the motorcycle, placing his hands on the handlebars, but he wasn’t uneasy because of the motorcycle. It was because of what Rebecca just informed him of the situation behind the scenes. Sebastian didn’t know what to think or even what to say.

“Belen, get on the back,” Rebecca told the popstar. Sebastian glanced up at her and noticed how calm she looked despite getting snapped at by her mother. There was no trace of the girl who was on the verge of tears a moment ago. She smiled warmly at him and Sebastian wondered what was going on inside her head.

Was she really okay or was she pretending?

“I can’t believe I’m doing this,” Belen said nervously as she approached the motorcycle. “I’ve never been on one of these before.”

“I have,” Sebastian told her and Belen looked relieved at that so he didn’t have the heart to tell her how he had very limited experience with motorcycles. He didn’t want to scare her. “A bunch of times.”

“That’s a relief,” Belen told him.  He smiled encouragingly at the brunette.

“I won’t let anything happen to you,” Sebastian said which came out way more intense than he meant. He blushed before clearing his throat awkwardly at the surprised look on her face. “I mean, just hold on tight and you’ll be fine.”

“Thank you,” Belen said softly. Sebastian just nodded before she put her helmet on and started to get on the back of the bike. His breathing hitched a little when he finally felt her sit behind him. It was stupid because he realized like he was acting like a teenager. Maybe it wasn’t even that. Maybe he was just nervous he was going to get her killed. Belen hesitantly wrapped her arms around him and held on tight to Sebastian like he told her.

“Okay, guys, I think we’re all ready for the first take,” Rebecca said to them, giving them the cue to get this thing rolling. Sebastian turned the key in the ignition and the motorcycle came to life. Belen swallowed hard as she practically felt the motorcycle purring underneath them. It was even louder than she imagined but Belen told herself not to panic.

Sebastian had done this before, right?

He probably owned a motorcycle and rode one all the time.

There was no reason to worry.

The director was yelling for everyone to be ready for the first take but Belen could only focus on the sound of the motorcycle’s roaring engine. She kept telling herself that it would be okay. This was a deserted road in the middle of nowhere and there was no one on the road.

“Let’s just get this take over with and the rest of everything will be easier,” Sebastian told her comfortingly although his voice was a bit muffled by the helmet and the engine of the motorcycle. Belen smiled.

“Thank you,” Belen told him and he just nodded before Rebecca sent a couple crew members over to make sure their helmets were on securely and everything was safe.

This was terrifying but at least this was something she could check off her bucket list. Belen then frowned at herself. She really needed to stop trying to find the bright side in everything.

It would be her doom.

* * *

It took around an hour or two to get all the shots the director needed for the motorcycle scene in the video. Belen felt more and more comfortable on the motorcycle since Sebastian didn’t go that fast which she was grateful for. They would slow it all down for the music video like they always did with music videos anyways.

Surprisingly, Belen thought the motorcycle ride was fun. It was exciting and new. Not to mention she placed a lot of trust in Sebastian when she got on the back of the motorcycle. She felt safe when he told her that he wouldn’t let anything happen to her.

There was definitely chemistry between them.

That was something Belen couldn’t deny despite what she told Melissa earlier. This was a good thing, right? It made the music video more believable if she and her co-star in the video had chemistry.

“Sebastian, I want you to pick Belen up and just run from this point to this point,” Rebecca told Sebastian. ‘Into You’ was playing in the background on a continuous loop as everyone was now standing outside the motel. It was dark now as they got ready for the night shoot.

“Just carry her, you mean?” Sebastian questioned and Rebecca nodded.

“You two finally got away from the city and now you’re seeing where the night takes you,” She said, giving both him and Belen more context. “This is so supposed be fun and playful. Nothing serious or dramatic. Just two people having fun and finally being alone with each other.”

“I got it,” Sebastian told her and Belen nodded in agreement. He looked down at the brunette who had changed her outfit from earlier. She was now wearing a pair of boyfriend jeans, black bra(apparently no shirt much to Sebastian’s surprise although he attempted not to leer), and oversized jacket which made her looked even smaller than she was. Usually Sebastian would’ve honestly doubted whether or not he could just carry a person around. He worked out a lot for the Marvel films but right now he was taking a bit of a break. However, Belen was so small he thought he could maybe manage it.

“I guess I’ll pick you up now,” Sebastian said awkwardly as everyone went back to behind the cameras. Belen looked up at him. “I won’t drop you or anything.”

“I trust you,” Belen told him and Sebastian was glad it was dark now. Maybe she couldn’t see him blushing like a teenage boy. So without giving the idea anymore pause, Sebastian picked her up carefully and Belen wrapped her arms securely around his neck. She blushed as he carried her bridal style and Sebastian was right in thinking that it wouldn’t be difficult picking her up. It was alarmingly a little scary at how light she was. Sure, she was really short but Belen seemed a little _too_ light.

“Okay so, Sebastian, I need you to get on the mark and then we can get going,” Rebecca told Sebastian, breaking him out of his concerned thoughts for Belen. He nodded before doing as directed.

“Great!” Rebecca shouted before looking back at the sound guys. “Play the music back and then we’ll start take one for the motel scene.”

‘Into You’ came back on over the speakers on set and Sebastian began to rock back and forth to the music subconsciously. He probably didn’t even realize he was doing it. Belen raised an eyebrow at him. She found him a little bit amusing in that moment. Especially since she originally thought he was a little serious but maybe he was more dorky than she imagined.

“What are you doing?” Belen asked him and Sebastian immediately stopped, looking down at her.

“Nothing,” He said immaturely and Belen laughed.

“You were about to start dancing, weren’t you?” Belen asked and Sebastian furiously shook his head.

“I definitely was not going to dance. Trust me…that’s something you don’t want to see. Maybe even less than me singing,” Sebastian told her and Belen laughed. She instantly felt a bit less tense than before.

“Really? Because we’re going to be auditioning dancers soon for the tour next year. You’re more than welcome to audition,” Belen said teasingly, her brown eyes gleaming with amusement.

Sebastian scoffed.

“I’ll probably be instrumental in losing you ticket sales if that were to ever happen.”

“I think you’d be instrumental in getting me _more_ ticket sales. People would probably just go to see you instead of me,” Belen retorted and Sebastian didn’t look like he believed her.

“Okay…now I know you’re trying to make me feel better,” Sebastian muttered but before Belen could respond the next chorus of the song came up and Sebastian surprised her by spinning them around in a circle. Belen squealed in surprise.

“Stop! You’re going to drop me!” She yelled out in fright but Sebastian didn’t stop. “You’re so freakishly tall and it’s a long way from the ground for me. I’m going to fall on my face and get sand everywhere. Have you seen my outfit? That’s not a good idea.”

“I’m freakishly tall?” Sebastian asked her in amusement, putting a short pause to his spinning around. “You’re the one whose freakishly short. I’m a normal sized human man. You’re like a little woodland pixie. I’m actually starting to wonder how your organs work at this point.”

“My organs?” Belen questioned as she laughed at him.

“Yeah, where are they? How do they all fit in there?” Sebastian asked her and Belen shrugged although she did not remove her grip from around his neck in fear that she would fall out of his arms. “It’s a medical mystery.”

“They’re where organs usually are,” Belen told him and Sebastian laughed. “Just the usual place.”

“The usual place?” Sebastian questioned and Belen nodded.

“All I know is that they’ve worked for the past twenty three years,” Belen said in a serious voice and Sebastian laughed again. “You’re honestly the first guy to ask me about my organs.”

“No guy’s been concerned for the state of your organs before?” Sebastian asked her and Belen shook her head, trying not to laugh again.

“Nope. Never,” Belen confirmed, wondering how the hell they even started this serious discussion about her organs. “Not even once.”

“That’s just not right,” He said as he kept playing along with whatever they were doing. “I was raised to always be concerned for a woman’s organs.”

“You were raised right,” Belen tried to say with a straight face. “Tell your mom I said thank you.”

“I will,” Sebastian said but stopped when Rebecca interrupted them. They both looked away from each other as they looked at the director.

“You guys did great,” She told them, grinning at the both of them. Upon looking at the confusion clearly on both of their faces, Rebecca elaborated. “You both looked so good in a more natural state that we just started rolling without telling you guys. I think this shot is better than we imagined. Good job, the both of you.”

Belen and Sebastian exchanged a glance before he quickly realized that there was no need to hold her anymore. It was pretty weird that he was still carrying her. He gently set her down and Belen disentangled herself from him. She was a little disappointed because they were having a good time before Rebecca interrupted. Belen even forgot that this was supposed to be work. She forgot for a moment, at least.

And that was more than usual.

* * *

“So we’re thinking of a more intimate scene for this part of the shoot,” Rebecca informed Sebastian as she talked to him inside the motel room where they were shooting the next part of the video. It was must’ve been nearing ten by now. They still had a couple of hours to get all the shots they needed for the night.

Before tomorrow, anyways.

The room was lit up with pinkish lighting for the music video. It fit in well with the aesthetic for the rest of the video and stylistically Sebastian could finally see what Belen was talking about earlier when she talked about her vision for the music video. It looked perfect. Just like a modern updated version of _The Bodyguard_. Sebastian never asked her if it was her favorite movie or not.

Probably.

Someone wouldn’t center an entire music video around one movie if said movie wasn’t, at least, on their list of favorites. Sebastian then glanced at Belen who was seated on the edge of the bed as the make-up artist did some touch-ups to her make-up. He noticed the way her leg bounced up and down with nerves. He frowned because he realized then that she wasn’t just nervous. She was a little scared too.

“Taylor Swift did it in her last music video but she played it safe. We want to go a little further,” Rebecca informed him but by the way the director glanced back at Belen’s mom, he realized that there was no “we”. She meant that Belen’s mom wanted this.

Sebastian realized why Belen was even more nervous now than earlier.

This was the thing she was arguing with her mom about. This was what had her so wound up and what her mom was so insistent about. He just didn’t understand how this pressuring female artists to show more skin was still a thing in 2016. Sebastian understood if there were women who were okay with showing more skin and that was completely fine by the way. He just didn’t understand how it was okay for Belen’s mom, and whoever the hell else, to pressure her to do something she obviously wasn’t comfortable with doing.

It was complete bullshit.

Sebastian suddenly wondered if this was something still going on in the music industry or if it was just her mother. It pained him to see someone being forced to do something that would probably drive them to tears afterwards.

And for what?

A three minute music video?

Was a three minute music video really worth Belen’s tears and discomfort? Apparently it was to these people and this was what pissed Sebastian off more than anything. However, he knew better than to call them out on their shit. Sebastian had no standing in the music industry. None whatsoever. Screaming at these assholes might actually make things even worse for her so he kept his cool and answered Rebecca calmly.

“No,” He told her and Rebecca raised her eyebrows.

“No?”

“No,” Sebastian confirmed and Rebecca gave him a look of disbelief. “Any scenes with any nudity have to be negotiated with my agent before shooting begins. If you wanted this scene then you would’ve had to include it in the document you sent to my agent’s office.”

“You’re telling me you have a no nudity clause?” Rebecca asked doubtfully and Sebastian nodded.

“Unless it’s negotiated then yes and this includes no sex scenes unless negotiated either,” Sebastian lied flawlessly to her. He was totally bluffing but he was hoping that Rebecca didn’t know that.

 Sebastian never had any problem with sex scenes or nudity if he believed the movie called for it or if it made sense for the character. But this was a music video and Belen was obviously uncomfortable as well as terrified. He understood that it would’ve been incredibly uncomfortable for someone who wasn’t an actor but she was also very young at that. Sebastian felt a need to look out for her since no one else seemed to be.

“You don’t strike me as the conservative type,” Rebecca told him and Sebastian shrugged.

“Looks can be deceiving,” Sebastian said nonchalantly and Rebecca snorted.

“Well, Mila’s going to love this,” Rebecca said sarcastically before walking off and Sebastian was glad to be done with her. Out of all the directors he had ever worked with, Sebastian was positive that Rebecca was the worst.

“I can only hope,” Sebastian muttered. He ignored Rebecca’s voice as she informed Belen’s mother of the news and he also ignored the way Belen’s mother started arguing with the director angrily. Sebastian then watched curiously as Belen didn’t even send a glance in her mother’s direction. She just stared at her phone in an attempt to probably ignore her mother’s antics.

“Are you doing okay?” Sebastian asked her after he finally gained enough courage to go talk to her. Belen looked away from her phone and up at Sebastian. She smiled as she set her phone aside.

“A little tired but yeah,” Belen told him but what she didn’t say was that she was tired most of the time. She barely got any sleep anymore between recording studio sessions, airplanes, promoting the new album, shooting the new music video, getting ready for upcoming award show performances, and interview after interview. Belen only got four hours of sleep the night before and she would be lucky to get that much tonight. She would honestly just pass out in the bed she was sitting on right now if she could. “I bet you’re tired of this song already, huh?”

Sebastian smiled at her. He knew she was referring to her song that was still being played in the background. Sebastian had probably listened to this song, at least, a hundred times now. Surprisingly, he wasn’t annoyed or frustrated that it was the only song he could listen to throughout the day. Maybe because he was distracted by a certain brunette.

“I think it’s really growing on me. I can’t say I mind it,” Sebastian told her and Belen feigned a look of suspicion.

“I don’t think I believe you.”

“I’m being completely serious. I like it,” Sebastian told her and Belen thought she might’ve even believed him. “I think I even know all the words.”

“I’d be surprised if you knew all the words. Annunciation isn’t my strong suit,” Belen said, half joking and half not. Sebastian chuckled. “Why don’t you sing it for me then? So I know you know all the words.”

“I’m not going to sing,” Sebastian said, completely rejecting the notion of singing in front of her. He would honestly just embarrass the hell out of himself if he sang in front of her. His singing voice was definitely something she didn’t want to hear.

“Please?” Belen pleaded with him, giving him a puppy dog look with those big brown eyes and the pout on her lips. God, it must’ve been so easy for people to cave into her. If there was one thing Sebastian learned about Belen so far it was that she was an incredibly difficult person to say no to. The worst part was that she probably didn’t even know she possessed that power. “Just one little verse. One verse and I won’t ask for anything else.”

“Nope. I’m still not going to do it,” Sebastian said, holding his ground and deciding that he was too mature to fall for her big brown eyes. “You can bat those eyelashes all you want, kid, but I’m still not going to sing. It’s really for your own good. You’d never be the same again after hearing me sing.”

“Why? Because you’re just that good?” Belen retorted and Sebastian couldn’t keep the grin off his face. “And I told you to stop calling me a kid. I’m twenty three.”

“Sorry. I keep forgetting you’re not a kid because you’re so short,” Sebastian teased and Belen huffed. “Your shortness plays tricks on me.”

“Well, believe it or not, Sebastian, I’m the tall one in my family,” Belen said, defending her height. She wasn’t as sensitive about it anymore so Sebastian’s teasing didn’t bother her. She knew it was all good fun. “My mom and abuela are both shorter than me.”

“Family reunions must be quite the Wizard of Oz affair,” Sebastian joked and for a second he worried that he went too far with all the short jokes but Belen playfully rolling her eyes convinced him otherwise.

“Are you done with the short jokes now?” Belen asked him and Sebastian nodded.

“I think so, yeah,” Sebastian said casually and Belen tried to resist the urge to smile but she failed horrendously. She felt like she hadn’t smiled in forever. At least, not an actual genuine smile. Mostly she just gave out fake smiles for the cameras but she laughed more times today than she had in the past year. Deep down she knew it was because of Sebastian. “I’ll let you know if I think of any others.”

“Please do that,” Belen said sarcastically. However, before Sebastian could respond, Rebecca came over to them.

“Okay, guys, so some news,” Rebecca informed them, looking incredibly annoyed at that point. She had just gotten through being yelled at by Mila. “We’re scrapping the more intimate scene. We’ve decided to go with something more sweet and fun.”

“Really?” Belen asked in surprise but Sebastian could tell how relieved she was. He wasn’t offended either. He was just glad that this seemed to take a lot of pressure off.

“Yes,” Rebecca said and then turned around to leave but not before giving Sebastian a glare. They waited until she was out of earshot to start laughing.

“What did you do to her?” Belen asked him through the laughter and Sebastian shook his head.

“Nothing. Absolutely nothing,” Sebastian tried to say earnestly. Belen gave him a doubtful look.

“I don’t believe you.”

* * *

If someone told Belen a month ago that she would being filming a music video with Sebastian Stan much less sitting on his lap, she wouldn’t have believed them. Yet this was exactly where she found herself after they started filming inside the motel room.

They had already gotten a couple shots but now they were moving forward with the music video. Belen was starting to not see him as the cute movie star she previously envisioned. Now she just saw him as a really gorgeous guy with a nice smile whose lips were literally inches away from hers.

They were already filming the scene and everything was rolling. Somehow Belen didn’t think sitting on a random guy’s lap was as awkward as she originally thought. Maybe it was the fact that they had spent most of the day talking and Belen felt more comfortable around him.

Belen had literally only known him for a day but there was definitely a connection. While she was always a sucker for a guy with a nice smile like Sebastian’s, there had to be a connection there too. The minor celebrity crush she had on him before was kind of forgotten in the wake of an actual crush that was forming.

This was really embarrassing.

The thought probably didn’t even cross Sebastian’s mind because she was a lot younger than him. He called her “kid”, after all. Honestly, Belen had never taken interest in someone that much older than herself before. This wasn’t a common occurrence or anything. Belen actually almost forgot Sebastian’s age until just a moment ago.

She just knew that she really liked him and suddenly she felt like a school girl with a silly crush. Belen might’ve even liked him so much that she didn’t even notice the fact that they were alone in the room or that a bunch of people were watching. Belen felt herself drifting closer to him, almost like something within herself was pulling her closer to him. It was a subconscious kind of feeling.

Then she kissed him.

This was all very backwards for Belen. Usually a guy asked her out before she kissed them. Somehow Belen didn’t seem to mind that much as her lips met his. She fully realized this was the first time she had met a guy and kissed him in the same day. It didn’t really bother her as much she thought it would.

As the kiss deepened, Sebastian pulled her closer to him. He supposed this was what Anthony meant when he said no one would feel sorry for him for doing this music video. Sebastian had grown accustomed to having to kiss very beautiful women in his line of work. A lot of it was work and sometimes it would even lead to something off set but Sebastian always took his work very seriously although he had to admit this was…nice. A very beautiful woman who he had amazing chemistry with and who was sitting on his lap with her lips pressed against his.

Sebastian kept telling himself that he wasn’t one of those actors that went after younger women. Not like the other ones in Hollywood that went out with models half their age. He never even contemplated the idea of dating a younger woman. Sure, lots of younger women seemed interested him and flirted with him at conventions but he never went there. He just assumed he wouldn’t have much in common with a younger woman.

They weren’t looking to settle down and just wanted to have fun which Sebastian understood. He had been twenty three once too. Twenty three-year-old Sebastian liked parties but now he dreaded them. It was all a part of growing up which was why Sebastian figured that there wasn’t much in common between him and a woman that much younger than himself.

Still…he couldn’t deny the attraction he felt to Belen just after spending a day with her. Maybe he was like all those other actors in Hollywood, after all. The Leonardo DiCaprios of the world who never dated a woman over twenty five. The thought of doing something like that always made Sebastian shudder but somehow this felt different. Sebastian knew this could be perceived as a cliché but he couldn’t find it in himself to care too much as he deepened the kiss, a part of him forgetting that this was technically just work and there were people around.

His fingers grazed her bare skin along her rib cage and he felt her gasp against his lips. Sebastian was about to pull away and apologize for making her uncomfortable when she knotted her fingers in his shirt, pulling him closer. He wanted to believe that maybe Belen was a natural actress. That her sudden devotion to the kiss was part of a natural ability since it wasn’t like she could actually be interested in him. Not only was she much younger but she could probably have any guy she wanted.

Why would she want anything to do with him?

Rebecca yelled cut and her voice barely registered in Sebastian and Belen’s heads but they pulled apart nonetheless. Belen couldn’t believe what just happened. That didn’t really feel like acting to her although Belen didn’t know much about acting. It felt a little too real if you asked her. A moment ago, she felt Sebastian’s tongue grazing her bottom lip. Was that the norm for acting?

Maybe he was a method actor?

Maybe that’s why it felt so real because he just went for it.

Sebastian was about to doubt himself and the attraction he felt for Belen when he noticed the blush on her face. She avoided his gaze in a not so discreet way as she seemed to find the wallpaper on the wall very interesting. Sebastian fully realized he got a little carried away with the kiss but Belen didn’t seem to mind at all. In fact, she seemed very affected by the kiss given her blush.

This gave Sebastian a new sense of confidence and he had trouble hiding the smirk on his lips. It seemed like there wasn’t a reason to doubt himself. The attraction clearly wasn’t one-sided and Sebastian relaxed knowing that he didn’t creep her out or make her uncomfortable. She seemed more than okay with the kiss that got a little carried away.

They both seemed to be in the same boat and while Sebastian still worried about what this meant, he also felt reassured that he wasn’t the only one that felt a connection or spark. The age difference still gave him hesitation but not enough for Sebastian to ignore the chemistry between them. Maybe there was something else to be explored here. Sebastian wasn’t sure but he knew he was completely alright if they needed to do another take of that kiss. He wouldn’t be offended in any way.

Hopefully they still needed a few more takes.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Belen doubts her chemistry with Sebastian after her mother's manipulation. She and Sebastian then spend another day filming the music video where things take a turn thanks, in part, to Elton John.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I in no way own 'Bennie and the Jets' by Elton John.

For the rest of night, Belen and Sebastian shared kisses during most of filming. Sometimes when it wasn’t required of them although both of them would deny that if anyone asked. Belen would press on about how it was for the music video but Melissa didn’t believe her.

It was fun pretending to be a couple and especially with the crush she had on Sebastian. He was very sweet yet goofy and funny at the same time. She had the best time filming the music video and Belen couldn’t ever remember having this much fun during work. Mostly because of Sebastian and the way he eased her nerves by getting her to laugh.

It occurred to her that she used to have fun. When it was just her and her teenage self writing songs in her bedroom. Her mom couldn’t afford an actual piano like she wanted back then so Belen had to settle for an old Casio keyboard her grandparents got her for her twelfth birthday. It wasn’t much but it was enough for Belen to learn on and enough to write songs with.

The songs she wrote back then were entirely hers. It was her and no Swedish songwriters. Not that there was anything wrong with the Swedish songwriters she worked with. They were brilliant and each song she wrote with them went platinum. They were like King Midas and everything they touched turned to gold. Belen was just some silly girl from Miami with a Casio keyboard so what did she know about the music industry, anyways?

There were a couple songs she wrote from those Casio keyboard days that ended up on her debut album but she didn’t consider them hers anymore. They took songs like ‘Piano’ and ‘Tattooed Heart’ and then changed them so much that Belen didn’t recognize them as her own songs anymore. They changed them from soft and slow ballads into pop hits.

Her creative input was almost non-existent on her albums. Sometimes they used a couple lyrics that she had written but most of the time they didn’t. She sat in a corner as all the other songwriters and producers from the label talked amongst themselves, barely even noticing Belen. She kept to herself and long learned that it was no use trying to add anything to the discussion. They would just patronize her or look at her as if she were cute.

She remembered trying to get the label to sign off on ‘Moonlight’ being picked as one of the singles on her latest album. Belen was so proud of that song because she had written it entirely by herself for her then boyfriend. She was proud because in her opinion it was the best thing she had ever written and she didn’t need anyone’s input on it. However, the label and producers told her that she was lucky they were even putting it on the album. The song was apparently too slow and not upbeat enough for them to want to put on the radio.

All the plans Belen had for ‘Moonlight’ crumbled just like that. Her ideas for the different ways she could sing the song for every talk show performance she did were forgotten and her vision for the non-existent music video faded. It was for nothing and Belen figured that this was it for her.

She wasn’t meant to be a songwriter.

Just a singer.

Other more talented people wrote the songs because they knew better than her. They had been writing songs a lot longer than she had. Some probably even before she was born. Besides…Belen still got to sing and perform for people. That was the main thing she always wanted, wasn’t it? To perform for people? Belen always thought so and maybe that meant making compromises.

Save the songwriting for just herself and sing other people’s songs.

“Belen, you did a great job tonight,” Mila Zavala told her daughter, breaking the popstar out of her thoughts. Belen blinked and looked up at her mom, trying to put her thoughts to the back of her mind. They were both back at Belen’s mansion after wrapping up shooting for the night.

“I’m really proud of you, Mija. I know I wasn’t exactly nice earlier to you but you know how I always get during these music video shoots. It’s very stressful.”

Belen didn’t know what she was talking about because her mom was like this all the time. Ever since she was a little girl. Nothing was ever good enough for her. No matter what Belen did or how hard she tried. It was just never enough.

“I understand, Mama,” Belen said, giving her mom a small smile. She was currently on her bed with Netflix on the TV in her room. Belen usually watched old episodes of _New Girl_ whenever she wanted noise on in the background without having to pay attention to what was happening on screen. She’d let her thoughts wander but just like everything, her mom seemed eager to interrupt.

“It would’ve gone better if that actor didn’t refuse to participate in the scene I had planned,” Belen’s mother then said bitterly. “No nudity clause my ass.”

Belen looked up at her mother in alarm. She tried to figure out if her mom meant Sebastian but who else could she be talking about? Sebastian was the only actor that had been around during the entire shoot so far. There was no other yet so it could’ve only been him.

“What?” Belen asked her mom and the older woman sighed.

“I’m guessing Rebecca didn’t tell you about her fuck up,” Mila complained loudly and usually Belen would ignore her mother’s insistent complaining but she couldn’t help but give her mother her full attention in that moment. “Apparently he outrightly refused to film the scene. He said that we would’ve had to negotiate that with his agent. That’s what we get for hiring an actor instead of a professional model.”

“I like Sebastian. He’s nice,” Belen said in a quiet voice. Usually she wouldn’t even bother arguing with her mom about anything but she felt the need to speak up in Sebastian’s defense. He had been nothing but kind to her since they met.

“Well, he doesn’t like you back enough to want to see you take your clothes off,” Mila retorted bitterly as she referred to her planned scene which had been foiled by Sebastian. Belen blushed and looked away from her mother in embarrassment.

Was her mother right?

Was that the reason Sebastian hadn’t wanted to go through with the scene? Because he wasn’t attracted to her? Everything seemed more than fine between them throughout the night as they filmed the rest of scenes for the night shoot. They laughed together a lot and talked about pointless things. She didn’t talk about her career and he didn’t talk about his career either. It was nice just to talk to someone about silly things. He didn’t seem to protest against kissing her either although maybe that was because it was just his job and that’s all he saw it as.

Belen realized how stupid she was to think he actually liked her or that there was anything between them. It was probably all in her head. She had to remember that this was just a job to him. He was an actor so this was just the usual for him.

Even though Belen was relieved not to have done the scene, she felt embarrassed for thinking Sebastian had any interest in her. She was just a kid(like he said) with a crush on him. That was all.

“Did you really think he likes you, Belen?” Mila asked her, giving her a patronizing look. The one that always reverted Belen back to feeling like a child. “He’s a moderately successful actor who made out because a twenty something-year-old popstar picked him out of all the other handsome actors in the world to be in her music video. He’ll get more publicity because of this.”

“He’s not like that,” Belen tried to deny even though she honestly didn’t know Sebastian. She only met him around twelve or fourteen hours ago.

“Oh, Belen, you’re still too young to learn the ways of men,” Mila said as she gave her daughter a sympathetic look. “This music video will only get him noticed more in Hollywood which may or may not lead to more parts. Do you honestly think he, a thirty something-year-old man, wants to be in a popstar’s music video? It’s probably a huge insult to him and all the years he spent at acting school.”

“I guess you’re right,” Belen mumbled. She couldn’t help but believe her mother’s words. Her mother always had a way of sounding rational. Belen was always something of a daydreamer with her head in the clouds and her mom was the only one that could bring her down to earth.

Belen thought she had parted with Sebastian on good terms earlier. He told her that he had a good time on set and gave her a smile that made her weak in the knees. Sebastian told her how much he was looking forward to the next day of filming and Belen believed him. Maybe he was just being polite.

“It’s okay, Mija,” Her mother told her with that patronizing smile Belen hated with a passion but Belen just sat there in silence. “There’s plenty of other guys out there who would be so lucky to have you.”

“Thank you, Mama,” Belen said quietly and her mother smiled at her in satisfaction before returning her gaze to her phone to bring up a couple other important topics she needed to discuss with her daughter. Belen smiled and nodded along but like always, she wasn’t listening. She was completely zoned out as she kept replaying her mom’s sentence over and over again in her head before a thought occurred to her.

_I don’t want to be had._

_I just want to be free._

* * *

 

“I feel like I’m secret service or something,” Sebastian joked as he self-consciously touched the ear piece in his ear. Belen laughed although she had to admit he looked really handsome in his suit. They were currently filming the last sequence of the music video which they had rented out a ballroom in downtown LA for. Belen was wearing a floor length black designer gown. It was the type of dress she usually wore to award shows that the scene in the music video was trying to depict.

“What do you think I’m even looking for security wise? Maybe I should’ve done some more research and talked to Manuel although the guy seems to hate me,” Sebastian said and Belen just shook her head at him in amusement.

“Manuel doesn’t hate you. He’s just doing his job,” Belen retorted and Sebastian somehow seemed doubtful at that. “You’d probably be looking for creepy stalker guys. Dudes who think they’re in an imaginary marriage with me.”

“Wait…are you serious?” Sebastian asked her, the smile falling off his face as he suddenly looked concerned for the girl he couldn’t stop thinking about since the previous night. She had constantly been on his mind ever since they parted the night before and Sebastian knew that he liked her probably a little more than he should’ve. Especially considering she was a lot younger than him but Sebastian was a bit selfish. He didn’t want to deny his attraction. Sebastian fully intended on asking her out by the end of the night. She would probably say no but he knew he would regret it if he never asked.

“It’s happened a few times,” Belen admitted and Sebastian’s eyebrows raised in disbelief. He had always heard about crazy fans stalking their celebrity obsession. Personally, Sebastian had never experienced that with his own fans. Sure, they were a passionate bunch but the most they would do was show him fanart they had drawn of Bucky Barnes or jokingly asked him to marry them. Sebastian never experienced the dark side of the celebrity/fan interaction.

“That must be terrifying,” Sebastian said, not knowing what else to say to her. Belen shrugged and smiled but the smile didn’t quite reach her eyes. He could tell that she was scared.

“Manuel’s good at making sure I’m safe so there’s nothing to worry about,” Belen told him but Sebastian felt a pang of worry wash over him. She was small and sweet. It was difficult imagining something bad happening to her.

“Still…it can’t be easy,” Sebastian said and Belen nodded.

“It isn’t but I can’t spend my entire life living in a bubble in fear of everything. It’s scary but I’m going to just live my life,” Belen said thoughtfully and Sebastian was left in a stunned silence. She didn’t sound as young as she was when she told him that. Belen sounded very wise and insightful. Sebastian, at times, found himself scared to leave his apartment in New York for fear that there would be pictures of him on the internet that people could see. Nowadays, he found himself a little too aware of his actions in public knowing that at any moment, someone might be watching. “It’s beyond my control so what’s the point in being scared?”

“You’re right. I spend so much time worrying about being photographed that I’m not actually living my life,” Sebastian told her, giving her a small smile because he was astonished by how simple she made all this seem. “You have a really good point, actually.”

“I’m not just some ditzy popstar, Stan. I can say smart things some times too,” Belen said jokingly but Sebastian almost frowned at her words. She said it in a joking manner but her smile didn’t quite reach her eyes.

“You’re not ditzy. Trust me, I’ve come across plenty of ditzy people and you’re the most unditzy person I’ve ever met,” Sebastian told her honestly and it was true. He hadn’t known her long but Sebastian could already get a feel for the type of person she was. Maybe it was because she was like an open book unlike most people in Hollywood. There was something honest and sweet about her that instantly drew Sebastian to her.

“Is ditzy our new favorite word now?” Belen asked and Sebastian’s smile returned to his face at her remark. She gave him a teasing smile, her brown eyes sparkling with mischief.

Fuck.

Sebastian fully realized he was in trouble now. Especially with the way she looked up at him with those gorgeous big brown eyes of hers. There was no doubt in his mind that she was a very beautiful woman but there was also something between them aside from him just finding her attractive. She was funny, kind, adorable, intelligent, and insightful. Qualities that Sebastian liked but never would’ve thought to look for in another person.

It had been a few months since he had broken up with his ex. Sebastian wasn’t exactly looking for a relationship. He had hooked up with a couple very nice and beautiful women since his break up but Sebastian hadn’t felt like looking for another relationship in the aftermath of his ex while also burying himself in his work. Even so, he wasn’t stupid enough to deny the chemistry between himself and Belen. It had been there from the moment he first locked eyes with her and Sebastian couldn’t remember the last time he felt this way. Not right away…anyways.

Sebastian suddenly wanted to know everything about Belen.

He wanted to know what her favorite movie was, her favorite food, what her childhood was like, where she went to get away from all the Hollywood bullshit, and just things about her as a person. Not her as in the popstar. There was a certain cloud of mystery that clung to her but Sebastian wanted to know more.

“Maybe,” Sebastian said but before he could say anything else, a different song came on through the speakers of the dance hall. They had taken a break from filming the award show scene for the video so crew members were running some test on the equipment. An Elton John song was playing through the speakers.

_Bennie and the Jets._

“I love this song so much,” Sebastian stated as a smile came back over his face. Belen practically beamed at him.

“Me too,” Belen responded and Sebastian gave her a curious look.

“Have you met him?” He asked her and Belen shook her head no.

“Not in person but he gave this amazing review of my album a couple weeks ago,” Belen said, still feeling like all this was surreal. Elton John talking about her album as if it was the best thing he heard all year. It was really mind blowing to say the least. “Which was really cool. He didn’t have to say that or anything but he did.”

“His opinion matters a whole lot more than any music critics. That’s for sure,” Sebastian told her and Belen was taken back by that.

She didn’t think he meant it in any serious or impactful way. He just said it off the top of his head. Belen had some reviews on her last album by music critics, some very male, who called her album “unoriginal” or “brain candy for the typical teenage girl”.

The reviews hurt Belen even though tried not to let them but Sebastian was right in a way. Elton John was one of the most legendary artists of all time and he called her album amazing and “pushing so many boundaries within pop music”. His opinion mattered more because he was Elton John. He actually created and performed music.

What had those music critics ever done?

“This is definitely my favorite Elton John song by far,” Belen said, changing the subject although she could not hide her smile from simply looking at how into the song Sebastian was. He looked like he wanted to sing it but held back since he was in public. Belen liked to imagine him in the car or shower singing his heart out. She then blushed at imagining him in the shower because she didn’t intend to think of him that way at first but then…Sebastian, shower, water, soap, and Sebastian naked. She forced herself to get that image out of her head. It was probably rude to lust after a guy her record label paid to be in her music video.

“Mine too,” Sebastian told her and Belen had that mischievous look in her eyes again as she gave him a teasing smile.

“Sing it,” Belen told him and Sebastian gave her a surprised look before laughing nervously.

“What? No, I’m not going to sing,” Sebastian told her seriously, looking around at the room full of people. “There’s people here.”

“So?” Belen retorted and Sebastian looked at her in disbelief.

“So I’m not going to punish all these people with my tone deafness,” Sebastian told her and Belen rolled her eyes.

“I bet you don’t sound as bad as you think you do,” Belen told him genuinely and Sebastian scoffed.

“You’re only saying that because you haven’t heard my shitty ass singing,” Sebastian told her and Belen just shook her head.

“Please, Sebastian? For me,” Belen begged him jokingly and Sebastian swallowed hard at the way her big brown eyes looked up at him as she gave him a little pout. He realized he wasn’t going to be able to say no to her.

“No,” Sebastian said weakly although he was probably really close to caving into her request. Even if he would end up humiliated.

“This can be your birthday present to me,” Belen told him and Sebastian gaze her a quizzical look.

“It’s your birthday?” Sebastian questioned and Belen smiled at him sheepishly.

“Two months ago so a belated gift,” Belen told him and Sebastian just laughed.

“You really don’t want to hear me sing,” Sebastian said, once again trying to get out of singing. He knew he wouldn’t be able to say no if she asked again.

“I’ll help you. I’ll sing with you. Come on, please don’t be boring,” Belen said, peer pressuring him so much that Sebastian groaned before finally relenting and giving into her.

“Fine but I don’t remember the words,” Sebastian told her and Belen just beamed at him, excited that he even agreed in the first place.

“Don’t worry. I’ll start,” Belen reassured him and Sebastian watched her carefree, excited demeanor in amusement. She acted like he gave her the best gift in the world by agreeing to sing.

 _“Oh, Candy and Ronnie, have you seen them yet?”_ Belen sang beautifully and immediately stunned Sebastian into silence. _“Oh, but they’re so spaced out. B-B-Bennie and the Jets. Oh, they’re so weird and they’re wonderful.”_

 _“Oh, Bennie, she’s really keen,”_ Belen sang, going for the high note and Sebastian’s jaw hung open in shock. He never heard anyone sing like that. Not someone who was standing right in front of him, at least. Her voice was something you couldn’t learn after spending a couple weeks with a vocal couch. It was something you paid a lot of money to hear in concert and somehow Sebastian felt incredibly to lucky to witness her singing in this very sudden moment.

“Sebastian,” Belen told him, opening her eyes. She gave him a look to tell him to join in and Sebastian gathered his bearings before reluctantly joining in. Although a duet with him and Belen was probably more than anyone could ever imagine. Probably more than what people wanted to hear too because Sebastian doubted his voice would compliment hers in any way. It wouldn’t compliment a moose’s singing voice if he was being completely honest.

 _“She’s got electric boots, a mohair suit,”_ They both sang. Sebastian’s voice was a little shaky and he was singing totally off key while Belen sounded like an angel descended down from heaven. _“You know I read it in a magazine, oh.”_

 _“B-B-Bennie and the Jets,”_ They continued to sing. Belen seemed to sense Sebastian’s discomfort and unease so she took his hands into her own. She started to sway them gently to the beat of the song and Sebastian felt his heart skip a beat. He felt like his middle school crush had asked him to dance at the 7th grade dance.

 _“Oh, Candy and Ronnie, have you seen them yet?”_ Belen sang at a higher note and Sebastian did so too although he in no way succeeded at sounding anywhere near as good as her but he didn’t care this time. He didn’t feel as self-conscious as he did before.

 _“Oh, but they’re so spaced out,”_  They sang as they danced. _“B-B-B-Bennie and the Jets. Oh, but they’re weird and they’re wonderful. Oh, Bennie she’s really keen.”_

 _“She’s got electric boots, a mohair suit. You know I read it in a magazine, oh,”_ Belen giggled in the midst of their singing. _“Bennie.”_

“Go out with me,” Sebastian said abruptly in the middle of their dance, putting an end to their singing. Belen’s smile fell off her face and she gave him a surprised look. Sebastian blushed because normally he wasn’t so forward. Usually it took him a bit longer to work up the courage to actually ask someone out. He didn’t know what came over him. It just slipped out of his mouth. There was something in the way she touched him and looked at him that made him take that step.

“What?” Belen asked in surprise, barely noticing that her hands were still in his.

“What are you doing after this weekend?” Sebastian asked her and Belen just stared back at him, clearly taken surprise by his boldness. “After this video, I mean. I know you’re probably really busy with promoting the album and-“

“Are you asking me out?” Belen asked him and Sebastian swallowed hard.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to come on to you like that,” Sebastian apologized, thinking that Belen was rejecting him. God, what was he thinking? Why would she want anything to do with him? Sebastian was a lot older than her and nowhere nearly as famous or notable as any of her exes. One was a Latin popstar and another was the ‘Can’t Feel My Face’ guy with the crazy hair. “I’m going to stop humiliating myself right now and ask you to please pretend like I didn’t just say any of that.”

“I thought you didn’t like me,” Belen said in a small voice, looking very shy as she looked up at him. Sebastian gave her a confused look.

“Why would you think that?” He asked her and Belen shrugged.

“I just thought this was a part of your job…that you were just doing your job. You know, acting and everything,” Belen said in reference to herself and Sebastian making out all night the night before. She thought, especially after the conversation with her mom, that Sebastian was just being professional and doing his job. She started doubting that he had any actual interest in her.

“My job?” Sebastian questioned before smirking at her although he was secretly relieved that she wasn’t put off by the thought of going out with him. “If that was me doing my job last night then I’d already have a fucking Oscar, Belen. I’m not that great of an actor. No one is.”

“Oh…” Belen trailed off shyly as she blushed. Sebastian ran his thumb over the top of her hand which he was still holding. God, she was so adorable. Beautiful too, of course, but a certain type of adorable that caused Sebastian to lose any train of thought when she looked at him like that with her Bambi eyes.

“I really like you, okay? I’ve had a lot of fun the past day and a half. I just thought I was coming on to this set for another job but the weird thing is that it hasn’t felt like work. Just a lot of goofing off and fun,” Sebastian told her honestly as he decided to be up front and honest with her about whatever seemed to be going on between them. “It’s been a long time since I felt that way and especially with someone else. I’m not usually this forward. I’m honestly panicking on the inside right now but I’m afraid I won’t see you again after today.”

“I’m afraid I won’t see you again either,” Belen said quietly as she looked up at him, finally finding the courage to look him in the eyes. “This weekend has been a lot of fun for me too. I can’t remember the last time I came to work and it didn’t feel like work. I almost wish it didn’t have to end. I really like you too.”

“It doesn’t have to end,” Sebastian told her, his gaze softening as he stared down at her. “I meant it before. I’d like to take you out to dinner.”

“When?” Belen asked him and Sebastian just grinned at her, mentally doing the Judd Nelson fist pump from _The Breakfast Club_ because he realized that this pull he felt to her wasn’t one-sided.

“Whenever you’re free. I’m not busy for the foreseeable future, just some auditions here and there, so my nights are free,” Sebastian told her hurriedly in the midst of his elation but he also hoped he didn’t sounded desperate at the same time.

“I’m free Wednesday night,” Belen finally said and Sebastian felt his heart skip a beat if that was even possible. He nodded, telling himself to keep his cool. “I have to do a few radio talk show appearances tomorrow and Tuesday then a photoshoot Wednesday morning but any time after four, I’m free.”

“Great,” Sebastian said. Her hands fell from his finally and they both blushed when they realized they had been holding hands all this time. “We’ll exchange numbers after the shoot’s done. I think your assistant has my phone.”

“She has mine too so don’t worry about it,” Belen reassured him before looking at him curiously. She still was in disbelief that he asked her out. Belen harbored a small celebrity crush on him for a short while although she had to admit she might be harboring something a bit bigger than a celebrity crush after the weekend they just had. “What should I wear?”

“Just something nice,” Sebastian told her and Belen laughed.

“What? Like this?” Belen questioned as she twirled around in her gown. Sebastian laughed with her.

“Yes, because I’m taking you to the Oscars Wednesday night. That was my plan this whole time,” Sebastian said sarcastically because that was the only place he honestly thought Belen could wear that dress. Belen giggled and Sebastian realized he loved the sound of her laughter. She sounded so carefree and happy. Different than the girl he witnessed practically crying when her mother snapped at her the day before. “I was going to make you get all dolled up and take you to the Oscars.”

“I’ve never been to the Oscars before,” Belen told him and Sebastian shrugged.

“Neither have I,” He retorted but was surprised when Belen smirked at him.

“Maybe you could take me there someday and I’ll meet a handsomer actor like Leonardo DiCaprio,” Belen flirted and Sebastian was taken back by her flirting but he quickly recovered in no time. He smirked at her.

“DiCaprio sounds really boring, actually. I heard he’s pretty dull and uninteresting so it would really be your loss since I’m cooler and more fun than him,” Sebastian flirted back and Belen just smiled at him.

“I was only kidding,” Belen told him sincerely. “You’re much handsomer than Leonardo DiCaprio.”

Sebastian immediately leaned down and kissed her, taking Belen completely by surprise. It didn’t take her long before she melted in his embrace and kissed him back. No one had ever kissed her like Sebastian had and Belen knew that she could easily fall for Sebastian. The idea scared her because she always fell hard and fast for guys. Sometimes it was too intense for most guys and Belen feared that she would scare him away. Although, she kind of lost her train of thought with Sebastian kissing her like that out of nowhere.

Sebastian finally pulled away after a moment, left breathless by the intoxicating feeling of her lips against his. It was a feeling he hadn’t been able to forget since yesterday when he spent the whole night kissing her. This time was real though. Not for any cameras or for work. Just for him and her.

“I’ve wanted to do that again since last night,” Sebastian admitted even though he was still surprised by how bold he acted. He was in his thirties now but he still hadn’t seemed to outgrow his awkwardness when it came to talking to women. “I can’t really stop thinking about you. I feel like I’m in high school again which was a long time ago for me and not for you which is weird in a way but I don’t want you to think I do this all the time. That I ask out younger women because I’ve never done this before and-“

“It’s okay, Sebastian,” Belen said softly as she interrupted him and smiled up at him. She thought she rambled a lot but Sebastian was even worse than her. Belen thought it was adorable. _He_ was adorable. “I can’t stop thinking about you either since last night. I’ve never gone out with someone older so I get what you’re saying. Not to mention this is really fast.”

“It doesn’t feel wrong though,” Sebastian told her softly and Belen smiled again.

“No, it doesn’t,” Belen said in agreement because it didn’t feel wrong. It should’ve felt wrong with everything moving so incredibly fast but Belen didn’t feel that way. She was only overwhelmed by the feeling of wanting to know everything about Sebastian.

“Belen!” Her mother’s annoying shrill voice called out, disrupting her and Sebastian’s moment. Sebastian suddenly had yet another new reason to dislike her mother. Belen just rolled her eyes before giving Sebastian another small smile.

“I have to go. She probably has another thing to complain about,” Belen told him and Sebastian wanted to tell her to not go to her mother. To just ignore her and stay there with him but he didn’t. He just nodded at her and watched as she walked away unable to hide the smile on his face as she did so. Her mother was glaring at him but Sebastian didn’t care.

“Belen, what are you thinking?! Flirting with that man. I don’t know what’s gotten into you but…” Sebastian just zoned out of the woman’s rant as he locked eyes with Belen from across the room. He could tell she was ignoring her mother too as she looked back at him, unable to keep the smile off her face.

Two days and he was already crazy about her.

Sebastian knew it was insane but he didn’t care for the first time in a while. Whatever this was between himself and Belen, Sebastian knew she felt the same. That was more than enough for him and he was excited for whatever Wednesday night had in store. He couldn’t remember the last time he actually went out on a date.

Fuck…two days and Belen had reduced him to feeling like a teenage boy giddy about a date with his school crush.

That woman didn’t know the power her Bambi eyes had.

**Author's Note:**

> I'll try to have a new chapter out soon. The next one will have Sebastian so not to worry. Tell me what you think and review. Thanks for reading.


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